Lakers awarded Kostas Antetokounmpo, younger brother of reigning MVP, off waivers

The Lakers were awarded power forward Kostas Antetokounmpo, the younger brother of reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, off waivers on Monday. Antetokounmpo, a 6-foot-10, 200 pound power forward, joins the Lakers on a two-way deal.

Antetokounmpo, 21, is the youngest of three brothers in the NBA. His oldest brother Thanasis, 27, has played in Greece, the NBA’s G-league and signed with the Milwaukee Bucks this summer.

Giannis, drafted by the Bucks in 2013, helped lead Milwaukee to the best record in the NBA last season. The Bucks lost to the eventual champion Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals. When Giannis was named the league’s MVP, he tearfully thanked his parents and his brothers as part of his acceptance speech.

Like his brothers, Kostas was born in Athens to parents who were Nigerian immigrants. With the exception of Thanasis, who was already playing professionally, the family moved to Milwaukee once Giannis was drafted. Kostas played high school basketball in Milwaukee for three years before playing college basketball at the University of Dayton.

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Kostas was originally drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 60th overall pick in 2018, then traded on draft day to the Dallas Mavericks.

On a two-way contract with the Mavericks, Kostas played in two NBA games. He saw more playing time with the Mavericks’ developmental affiliate, the Texas Legends, where he averaged 10.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.3 blocks and one steal in 25.4 minutes per game.

Teams can have two players on two-way deals on their roster at a time, and those players may be with the NBA team for 45 days, and must play with the team’s developmental affiliate for the rest of the season. Antetokounmpo joins Zach Norvell Jr. with such a designation on the Lakers’ roster.