Milwaukee Bucks forward Thanasis Antetokounmpo will be the lone player from the squad on the Greek national team that will compete in the FIBA 2023 World Cup in the Philippines.
Antetokounmpo has made it to Greece’s 12-man lineup for the World Cup, which will begin on August 25th.
Aside from Antetokounmpo, also part of Greece’s lineup are Kostas Papanikolaou, Giannoulis Larentzakis, Ioannis Papapetrou, Georgios Papagiannis, Michalis Lountzis, Dinos Mitoglou, Nikos Rogkavopolous, Thomas Walkup, Lefters Bochoridis, Dimitris Moraitis, and Manos Chatzidakis.
Big blow for Greece
There were three Antetokounmpos when Greece announced its preliminary squad for the World Cup. Two Antetokounmpo brothers, Giannis and Kostas, eventually pulled out from the team due to various injuries.
Giannis was supposed to be the star of the team, but the Greek Freak decided to withdraw as he is still recovering from a procedure on his left knee to clean up loose cartilage. Greece will also be without heady playmaker Nick Calathes, but Giannis’ absence has the bigger impact.
Giannis’ absence will be heavily felt
Giannis was a consistent producer when he played for Greece in the 2014 and 2019 World Championships. The two-time NBA MVP has FIBA career averages of 19.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists.
Without Giannis, Greece’s bid to win the World Cup has clearly become tougher than it is bracketed with Team USA in Group C. Also in Group C are Jordan and New Zealand.
With Team USA and Greece belonging in the same group, Thanasis will be going up against fellow Milwaukee Buck as Bobby Portis Jr. is one of the key cogs of the American squad.
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