Giannis Antetokounmpo Reveals the One College Basketball Offer He Got

Giannis reveals the one college offer he got originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

The Milwaukee Bucks struck absolute gold with their gamble on Giannis Antetokounmpo in the 2013 NBA Draft.

But well before the Bucks, there was another team in the United States that recognized the Greek Freak’s potential.

In an interview with For The Win, Antetokounmpo revealed that he actually received one scholarship offer from a U.S. college.

“When I was 15, I was ‘highly recruited’ by Old Dominion,” Antetokounmpo said. “That was my only offer.”

Rather than heading down to ODU in Norfolk, Virginia, Antetokounmpo continued to play professionally in Greece. Following a season in Greece’s second division at age 18, he was drafted 15th overall by Milwaukee.

While not going the college route worked out just fine for the two-time NBA MVP and one-time Finals MVP, Antetokounmpo said he wishes he could have gone through the college experience.

So if he could go back in time, where would Antetokounmpo want to play college ball?

“Definitely Duke,” he said. “I like Duke because of the players that came out of that program. You usually see a lot of four men that don’t fit the mold. I think I’m one of those guys. I’m 6-11 and I can handle the ball and pass and get in the paint. You see players like that who came out of that program: Zion Williamson, Jabari Parker, Jayson Tatum, and Brandon Ingram. Not only are they very good basketball-wise but academically it’s also a great school.”

Antetokounmpo would have been a freshman in 2012-13, when Duke was led by Mason Plumlee, Seth Curry and Quinn Cook. The Blue Devils lost in the Elite Eight that season, but maybe they would have been champs if a long, athletic forward from Greece was on the team.