Goran Dragic slams ex-NBA star over comments about Giannis Antetokounmpo

Arenas then doubled down in an online post, saying that Antetokounmpo has not added any new skill to his game since entering the league.

The new Chicago Bulls guard, Dragic was among those who were rubbed the wrong way by Arenas’ comments. Speaking this week at EuroBasket, where Antetokounmpo is also competing, Dragic lit into Arenas.

“Giannis is [an] MVP. Gilbert Arenas, I don’t know if he was ever MVP,” said Dragic. “I don’t think so. He cannot talk about Giannis. Giannis won a championship, he won MVP, he won Defensive Player of the Year.

“Sometimes when they retire, they just want to be relevant,” Dragic added. “Sometimes they come out in the media, but it is what it is. Gilbert Arenas, he was an unbelievable player, unbelievable scorer. But in the end, I feel like [in] this generation, there are a lot of good European players in the NBA who were MVP or win a championship.”

Dragic is right that Arenas’ comments reek of an old head trying to stay relevant rather than having any sort of basis in reality. Antetokounmpo should be immune from these criticisms by now after his epic 2021 playoffs where he led Milwaukee to the title (on a badly-injured knee) and dropped a 50-burger in the championship-clinching victory. 

Plus (contrary to whatever sport Arenas has been watching), Antetokounmpo has vastly improved his game over the years as a midrange scorer, a versatile post-up threat, a shot creator for others, and an all-around defender and rim protector. That is not even considering Antetokounmpo’s other accolades (MVP, Finals MVP, First Team All-NBA, First Team All-Defense, DPOY, etc.) that Dragic hinted at.

Antetokounmpo has otherwise earned the respect of some of the most notorious player haters of the previous NBA generation. Thus, Arenas should probably take a cue from Dragic here and delete his account.