What is the beef between Giannis and Malika Andrews all about? Did the NBA star walk out on the reporter?

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3 months ago

Giannis Antetokounmpo

What is the beef between Giannis Antetokounmpo and Malika Andrews all about, and did Giannis walk out on the reporter?

Giannis Antetokounmpo is usually a composed personality both on and off the basketball court. The Greek Freak has very rarely been seen to lose his temper but he ended up losing his cool in a press conference with ESPN reporter Malika Andrews a couple of years ago – a tournament where he ended up walking out.

Giannis Antetokounmpo in action

It was back in the 2019 NBA Eastern Finals that the Milwaukee Bucks were up against the Toronto Raptors – and Giannis was right in the spotlight. The Greek Freak had just won the MVP – but the season did not end well for the Bucks as they lost to the Raptors.

The Bucks lost to the Raptors in four straight games and bowed out of the tournament for the season, and Giannis was under the spotlight as he addressed questions from the press in the immediate aftermath of the defeat. However, a question from ESPN’s Malika Andrews proved to be too much even for Giannis.

What was the context of the Malika Andrews-Giannis situation all about?

Malika Andrews’ question was not primarily what made Giannis lose his cool, but in fact, there was a backstory behind the situation.

Mallika Andrews had written a story about how Giannis plans to leave the Bucks after their defeat to the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Finals. The Bucks were favorites to win and were leading 2-0, but the Raptors, led by Kawhi Leonard, came back to win four matches on the trot and made it to the NBA Finals.

So when Andrews came up with her question in the press conference, Giannis chose to simply walk out of the press conference in very uncharacteristic fashion. It was one of the rare moments of a loss of temper in Giannis’ NBA career, and he eventually redeemed himself as well as the Bucks when he won the 2021 NBA Championship with them.

Giannis in 2024

Often hailed as the modern-day GOAT, Giannis plays for Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA. Giannis was named as the Eastern Conference captain in 2024. He also missed the playoffs of NBA 2024 because of a Calf Injury.