What NBA Star Giannis Antetokounmpo Eats In A Day
Giannis Antetokounmpo is on top of the world right now. He was just named the MVP of the NBA finals for the record-setting role he played in netting the Milwaukee Bucks their first championship in 50 years (via Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). According to the NBA, he was the first player in the league's history to have 50 points, 10 rebounds, and five blocks in a championship game, and only one of seven to have ever achieved the 50 point milestone. In fact, anyone watching Game six may well have had the impression that Antetokounmpo single-handedly won the game — and thus the championship — for the Bucks, since he did score nearly half of the team's 105 total points.
So what made the basketball star the man he is today? Hard work, dedication, hours and hours of practice every single day, yada yada yada, the typical path to sports stardom. Oh, and food ... so much food. At 6 foot 11, and burning approximately a trillion or so calories a day, Antetokounmpo needs a whole lot of fuel to keep him going.
Giannis Antetokounmpo keeps it healthy when he's training
As Antetokounmpo tells NBA Fit, he's never really off his game, since even in the off season he works our regularly to stay in tip-top shape. He also tries to stick to a fairly healthy, if hearty, diet on a daily basis. For breakfast on most days, the basketball player says he likes to eat an egg sandwich with a side of fruit. After a tough workout, he will replenish his body with a protein shake. He also tries to have a good protein-rich meal, as well, and mentions chicken as a favorite source of high-quality, lean protein. All this emphasis on protein doesn't mean that he shies away from carbs, though. Like any athlete, Antetokounmpo needs the fuel that carbs supply, so he counts pasta as a healthy indulgence.
According to the Protein Teacher blog, Antetokounmpo might consume six meals in a day. On a typical game day, they say he might begin with an egg and cheese sandwich, then have a post-workout protein shake followed by a lunch of pasta with chicken, turkey, or steak and veggies. After this, he'll usually drink a pre-game fruit smoothie. His post-game dinner may be something like chicken wings and salad. Before bedtime, Antetokounmpo will have a final snack consisting of a protein shake and a granola bar.
The basketball star does have his cheat-day faves
According to Sportscasting, the average NBA player can burn up to 1,000 calories per game. As Antetokounmpo is hardly the average NBA player, his total is likely quite a bit higher than that. If anyone could be said to have earned a post-game cheat day, it would definitely be him. So what does he like to eat on those days when he lets himself indulge a bit? As Antetokounmpo told an AP News reporter after the Bucks pulled off a big road win in D.C. earlier this year, "I'm looking forward to taking my day off tomorrow, enjoy my pepperoni pizza, my smoothie, my chicken wings" (via the Wisconsin State Journal).
As to what type of chicken wings Antetokounmpo likes best, the Daily Memphian broke that news back in March. When the Bucks were in town taking on the Grizzlies, Giannis stopped by the Wing Guru. A reporter asked him what kind he'd ordered, and he answered, "They are lemon pepper wings man."
Greek food gives him a taste of home
Perhaps Antetokounmpo preference for lemon-flavored wings isn't too surprising when you consider where he comes from. Although both of his parents are Nigerian, he was born and raised in Greece and chicken cooked with lemon juice is a classic Greek dish. Antetokounmpo is super-proud to be the favorite player of the Greek-American community across the U.S., telling Milwaukee's TMJ4 news station that "I'm very, very happy that I can make them proud. It's a great honor to be able to bring Greeks to the stadium and for them to have something that makes them happy, something that they can rally around."
Although there are a number of Greek restaurants in and around Milwaukee, the city that Antetokounmpo has called home for the better part of a decade, he does have one favorite — the Omega Restaurant on Milwaukee's South 27th Street. Although the restaurant has an extensive diner-style menu featuring All-American classics along with a selection of Italian and Mexican dishes, they do feature Greek specialties including spanakopita, gyros, chicken shish kabob, and Athenian-style lamb chops. So does the Omega serve the best Greek food this side of Athens? Maybe not. As the athlete also told TMJ4, if he doesn't go to the Omega, "I wait for my Mom to cook me Greek food." Luckily, as Bleacher Report tells us, his mom lives in Milwaukee, too, so he doesn't have far to travel if he wants some of her good home cooking.
The athlete also likes Mexican food, when he can get it
Don't you hate it when you walk into a restaurant to wait for a table and the restaurant staff doesn't even notice you're there? Believe it or not, this can even happen to celebrities. While you'd think it would be impossible to overlook a basketball star whose face not only adorns billboards all over town, but who also stands just shy of 7 feet tall, well, you know, when restaurant staff is deep in the weeds, stuff happens.
Back in 2018, Antetokounmpo tried to go out for a post-game meal at Milwaukee's popular BelAir Cantina, a restaurant known for its California/Mexican cuisine. As ESPN reports, the athlete stood and waited for 10 minutes but no-one offered him any help. He left the restaurant and instead dined at the nearby DiModa pizza, but he later shared (via the Bucks' Twitter): "I did not find it a big deal...it was a beautiful day, there were a lot of people enjoying their Sunday brunch. I've been in the restaurant a lot of times. They are good people." BelAir appreciated his forgiveness, but according to Urban Milwaukee, they still offered the big man a free meal next time he dropped by. Two other Milwaukee restaurants, however, announced that they'd henceforth be reserving him a seat. Whenever Antetokounmpo wishes to eat at Rare Steakhouse or Mazorca, his table will be ready and waiting.
Giannis Antetokounmpo celebrated his championship with a fast-food feast
After the champagne corks stopped popping, Antetokounmpo (probably) toweled himself off, loaded his trophies into his big black SUV, then headed out for breakfast at Chick-fil-A. And what a breakfast it was! Milwaukee's major news networks differ as to whether he ordered just Chick-fil-A nuggets alone (Fox 6) or whether he ordered them in the form of Chick-fil-A minis (CBS 58), but all accounts agree on the number — he ordered 50 of these items, one for each point he'd scored in the previous night's game. While Antetokounmpo did jokingly ask if he could get free Chick-fil-A for life after bringing the Bucks a championship at long last, the managers at the Brookfield store he visited told him that free food would require back-to-back championships.
Another fast food chain, Wisconsin-based Culver's, stepped in to fill the gap. The Shorewood location changed their sign to read "Giannis Free Food 4 Life Here!" and followed it up with a tweet, "Culver's of Shorewood co-owner George Dimitropoulos would be honored to offer you free food for life. Your loyalty to our home state is inspiring!" A generous offer indeed from a man whose name indicates he may have ties of his own to the NBA star's birthplace. No word yet, though, on whether Antetokounmpo has taken him up on the offer, although a 2018 tweet from rival Milwaukee area custard chain Kopp's indicates that the basketball player won't say no to frozen custard.