Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo has reacted to the Damian Lillard trade, which saw his 2021 championship teammate Jrue Holiday get traded away.
Giannis has made it clear that winning another championships comes above all else, but has reflected on the loss of Holiday.
“Jrue is my f–king brother for life,” Giannis told B/R’s Chris Haynes. I love his family. I love him. I appreciate him. I wish him nothing but the best. He blessed me with a f–king championship,” Antetokounmpo told B/R. “He’s the one who made that huge steal in Game 5 of the Finals. I went to battle with him multiple times. F–k basketball. F–k the media shit. This guy is my brother for life, and it’s always going to be like that. He’s going to thrive wherever he ends up.”
In saying all that, Giannis is clearly excited to welcome another championship-caliber player into the fold who shares the same goal as him.
“Now at the same time, I’m excited to have Dame,” he said. “He gives us a chance to win a championship. I’m excited to play with the caliber of player that he is. He can score the ball in his sleep and shoot the lights out.
“It’s a bittersweet day for the city of Milwaukee. You get Dame, who is a great player, but you lose a great guy. Jrue took us to the promised land. I’m 10 years in now. I know it’s a business. At the end of the day, Jrue will alway be be my brother for life. He’s one of the best human beings I’ve been around. But we’ve got to focus on the goal to win the championship. Dame wants this. He’s hungry to win, and he’s going to push us. I’m very happy to have him on our team.”
The acquisition of Dame also increases the chances of the two-time MVP staying in Milwaukee long-term.
Milwaukee now boast a heap of veteran players like Giannis, Lillard, Brook Lopez, Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis, who no doubt have one goal in mind.
“When the deal was announced, one of the first text messages Lillard received was from Antetokounmpo,” Haynes wrote.
“It read, “Let’s get this f–king championship.””