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Eric WoodyardESPN
LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo may be competitors at rival conferences, but they share the same feelings about the league’s plans to host an All-Star Game in March in Atlanta.
Fresh out of a 33-point, 12-rebound performance in Milwaukee’s 123-105 victory in Cleveland on Friday night, Antetokounmpo supported James’s position on the game that was taking place in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I think all the players were looking forward to those five days, seven days, whatever the days. We all have to follow the big dog,” said Antetokounmpo, referring to James. “The dog says he has no excitement and energy for the All-Star Game and I am the same way. I really don’t care about the All-Star Game. We cannot see our families.”
“Like, I can’t worry about the All-Star Game. I want to see my family. I want to see my younger brother in Spain, I want my brother to come and see me,” he added. “So, I am the same way. I have zero energy, zero excitement. At the end of the day, if they tell us that we are going to show up, we have to do our job. I will always do my job, I am always showing up, giving the right example. But at the end of the day inside, deep down, I don’t want to do it. I want a rest. “
Antetokounmpo came in second, behind Kevin Durant, from Brooklyn, on the attacking court of the Eastern Conference, in the first return of the fans in the NBA All-Star vote.
The current MVP and Defense Player of the Year has played in the past four All-Star Games, citing his 2020 experience in Chicago as “a lot of fun for fans”.
“At the end of the day, if we have the All-Star Game, I hope the fans can be there and we can repay them,” said Antetokounmpo. “At the end of the day, if we have the All-Star Game just to have the All-Star Game and we don’t have fans, I don’t see any point in having the All-Star Game.”
Before the Bucks-Cavaliers’ complaint, Milwaukee arrived in Cleveland on match day due to mechanical problems with the team’s plane on Thursday night. The Bucks landed in Cleveland on Friday morning.
Players learned to adapt to these types of situations while playing during the pandemic and in almost empty arenas.
Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer blew out a breath before expressing his opinion of the All-Star game, saying, “I fully understand that there are many concerns and I share them.”
Antetokounmpo, like James, said he had the impression that the league would not maintain the annual showcase until reports indicating otherwise began to emerge. He said he preferred to use the time to relax from basketball instead of competing that night.
“I thought about it, obviously, at the beginning of the season, where everything we knew would not be an All-Star game would be a time to spend time with our family,” said Antetokounmpo. “Obviously, when the protocol changes, it is kind of difficult because on the road, your family cannot come. At home you cannot leave the house, you can only go to the training center or the arena and you have no time to take your family out for a good dinner or your family coming on the road or just running away from the game. “