Dallas Mavericks’ Owner Details How Missing Out on Giannis Antetokounmpo Was a Blessing in Disguise For the Organization

Giannis Antetokounmpo has had a fantastic journey in the NBA so far. He went from being an underrated talent to establishing himself as one of the best talents in the league. Looking back at the 2013 NBA draft, it seems unbelievable that Giannis was picked 15th overall by Milwaukee.

But that decision turned out to be a game changer for the Bucks. They decided to invest in Giannis and the 26-year-old has been nothing but amazing, so far. However, there was another team who had Giannis under their radar.

Mark Cuban and the Dallas Mavericks were quite impressed by the Greek Freak. Unfortunately, they missed an opportunity to draft the reigning MVP.

Mark Cuban: an unknown story about the Greek Freak

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban sat for an interview with Bill Simmons for “The Ringer” podcast. Cuban revealed that his corner had all the plans to draft him, but unfortunately, they waited too long.

“With Giannis, I remember watching the two videotapes we had of him in the Greek league. And we had a plan because we were still trying to maximize Dirk. It was two years after we won and so we had to get down to the 18th spot to have enough cap room to sign a guy that we ended up not getting.

“Talking to our guys, they’re like he’s the real deal, he will be the real deal. I’m like here we are at 13. If no one sees him and knows him just after these two videotapes, he’ll be there at 18. If we’ve gotten Giannis, we wouldn’t have Luka.”

While the Mavs missed out on Giannis, they stepped on the gold mine. They found their next franchise star in the European magician Luka Doncic. As Cuban said, if the Mavs had drafted the Greek Freak, they would have missed out on Doncic.

Both players are generational talents and have a chance to become the face of the league. Of course, only once Lakers superstar LeBron James calls it a day.

Can Giannis Antetokounmpo lead the Bucks to an NBA Championship?

After months of uncertainty, Giannis Antetokounmpo finally re-signed with the Milwaukee Bucks. The 2-time MVP is locked in with the organization for the coming 5 years. However, he has a huge goal to achieve – bring a title to Milwaukee.

ALSO READ | ‘This is My Home’: The Best Fan Reaction to Giannis Antetokounmpo Signing NBA’s Biggest Contract With Milwaukee Bucks

In the last two seasons, the Bucks have dominated their opponents in the regular season. But during the playoffs, they have failed to reach the same level of success. The franchise and Giannis himself need to work together to reach their goal.

Giannis needs to make his game multi-dimensional while the Bucks try to bring more talent around him. It will be exciting to see how the next few years pan out for Giannis and the Bucks.