The Los Angeles Lakers are known to have one of the biggest fans bases not only in the United States, but all around the world.
Lakers gear can be seen in arenas all across the country and globe, so it comes as no surprise that former Boston Celtics executive Danny Ainge found himself on the wrong side of a heckling while doing some scouting.
According to Bleacher Report’s Mirin Fader, whose book “Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA MVP,” comes out next month, Ainge was scouting current Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo in Greece leading up to him being drafted in 2013 and fans at the arena started chanting “Lakers” at him, h/t Darren Hartwell of NBC Sports:
“One of my favorite interviews was actually learning about the Celtics’ interest in Giannis and traveling to Greece,” Fader told host A. Sherrod Blakely on the “A-List Podcast.”
” … He came to a road game in a place called Volos. The fans were heckling him. They don’t know who he is at first. They think Danny Ainge is an opposing Greek (general manager).
“Then they find out he’s Danny Ainge, and then they start screaming insults and curses, and then they start screaming ‘Lakers,’ and then he realizes they’re making fun of him because they realize he’s Danny Ainge.”
This comes as no surprise as Lakers fans are as passionate as any other fanbase and the one thing they are most passionate about is their hatred for Ainge and the Celtics.
Luckily for the Lakers and their fans, Ainge got this one wrong as he traded up to No. 13 in 2013 and drafted Kelly Olynyk, watching Antetokounmpo go two picks later to the Bucks. While Olynyk has had a solid career for himself, he is nowhere on the level of Antetokounmpo, who is a two-time MVP and perhaps the brightest young star in the league.
Antetokounmpo discusses seeing James at Game 5
This year has been a magical one for Antetokounmpo and the Bucks as they defeated the Phoenix Suns in six games to win the franchise’s first championship since 1971.
Current Lakers star LeBron James was actually in attendance for Game 5 of the series in Phoenix and Antetokounmpo discussed how crazy it was seeing that.
While James is still considered the face of the NBA, it’s no secret that his career is on the backend, so perhaps Antetokounmpo will be the one that takes the throne when it’s all said and done.
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