Giannis Antetokounmpo made headlines last month while on duty for Greece national basketball team when one moment he had with a teammate went viral. It was the Milwaukee Bucks star slapping his teammate Giannoulis Larentzakis.
The slap happened after Greece’s friendly game in which Antetokounmpo did not suit up.
Why did Giannis Antetokounmpo slap Larentzakis like that 😭
🎥 giannispan_/TikTok pic.twitter.com/kuwtbvEMvd
— BasketNews (@BasketNews_com) August 16, 2025
Immediate reactions were negative, mostly towards the Greek Freak. Even European and American reporters found it offensive. They said it was unprovoked and overly aggressive.
Ain’t no damn way. Don’t care who you are https://t.co/cuZO0wJU0I
— Jamie (@js3kbullies) August 17, 2025
Giannis Antetokounmpo is seen slapping Giannoulis Larentzakis, a player for the Greek national team and Olympiacos. The slap, which appears unprovoked and aggressive, happened as the team prepares for EuroBasket 2025.
(🎥: via giannispan_ @tiktok)
pic.twitter.com/qnbLKEnDak— SpursRΞPORTΞR (@SpursReporter) August 16, 2025
Their coach already explained that there was nothing out of ordinary in that exchange.
“Giannis brings energy to every practice and every huddle,” head coach Vassilis Spanoulis said.
“His teammates know him and understand his passion.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo makes clarification
EuroBasket is over and Antetokounmpo, Larentzakis, and the rest of the Greece team went on to achieve a historic finish. They got into the podium for the first time since 2009 by winning the bronze medal against Finland.
Was there any discord between Antetokounmpo and Larentzakis? There was none. However, he acknowledged that the slap was not nice.
“We were classmates, we are like this since we were kids,” Antetokounmpo said in an interview with Sport24.
“But It wasn’t nice. I was upset because I gave the right to people talk about our relationship. We were both upset about what was said.”
He also went on to explain that it was a banter that continued in the next game.
“Nothing happened. You saw, in the next game he was slapping me. In the locker room we are super close. We’ve been like that since we were kids, we’ve played in many tournaments together,”
“I didn’t slap him as hard as it looks, I really mean it. I didn’t hit him that hard. We talked, we laughed. That was it. It was nothing.”
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