NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the toughest players on the court. But off the court, he loves to joke around. During a recent interview, he was trolling his friend, Nick Kyrgios. With the Australian Open around the corner, Giannis was asked about world number 47 in men’s tennis. He immediately replied, “Why him?” 

Giannis also had an interesting comparison for Kyrgios. He said, “Nick Kyrgios, he’s a shaky personality. How can I say this politely, he’s the Dennis Rodman of tennis. I’m joking. Good guy, had an opportunity to talk to him a little bit. I think he’s a Miami Heat fan. I wish him the best of luck.”

The Australian tennis star later laughed and responded on Twitter saying, “Haha my boy love you!!! Keep doing you and inspiring brother.”

Nick Kyrgios and his playful relationship with Giannis Antetokounmpo

Giannis is friends with Kyrgios, and they also have a group with his compatriot Stefanos Tsitsipas. They also bond since Kyrgios is of Greek origin. Back in October, when Antetokounmpo and Tsitsipas were at a beach in Greece, they filmed a video where the Bucks star said Kyrgios was “n*ts.” 

A month later, during an interview, Kyrgios hinted Giannis would leave the Bucks to join the Heat. In reply, Giannis just smiled, which led to a lot of rumors which might have got him in trouble. He tweeted to Kyrgios saying, “Why do you always have to start something?”

Giannis is now in his 8th season with the Bucks. After winning two MVPs on the trot, his focus will be on the biggest prize available in the NBA, which is the Larry O’Brien championship trophy. The Bucks have assembled their strongest team in recent memory and will be aiming for nothing but the title.

After losing in the first round of the Acapulco tournament last year, Kyrgios hasn’t featured in a tournament since then. He returns to action with the Australian Open back in his home country. He crashed out in the Round of 16 in last year’s edition.

Kyrgios is yet to go beyond the quarterfinals in a Grand Slam, and he will aim to finally achieve that now.