NBA star Giannis journeys to his roots in Nigeria in new documentary: How to watch

Giannis Antetokounmpo has accomplished a lot on the basketball court, most notably winning an NBA championship and two NBA MVP awards in his 10-year career.

During the past offseason, the 29-year-old Milwaukee Bucks forward fulfilled a lifelong achievement: a visit to Nigeria, the home of his mother, Veronica, and late father, Charles. His parents moved from Lagos, Nigeria to Athens, Greece in 1991, for career opportunities. In Nigeria, “it was very hard to get a job,” Charles Antetokounmpo told NPR in 2013. He died of a heart attack at the age of 54, in 2017.

Immigrating to Greece, the parents left their firstborn son, Francis, with his grandparents. The reason? “This is going to take us to a greater place in the future,” his mother, Veronica, told Yahoo! Sports in 2022. “Then, this is where we are now today. We are very amazing.”

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Older brother Thanasis also plays for the Bucks – he was part of the Bucks’ NBA 2021 title-winning squad along with Giannis – and younger brother Alex currently plays for the Wisconsin Herd, the Bucks’ NBA G League team. Another brother, Kostas, who won an NBA championship in 2020 with the Lakers, is now playing basketball in Greece.

Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks walks to the bench during a game against the Boston Celtics at Fiserv Forum on Jan. 11, 2024, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Bucks defeated the Celtics 135 – 102.

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A new documentary, “Ugo,” produced in partnership with WhatsApp, captures the NBA star’s trip to Nigeria in August, accompanied by his mother. The 31-minute film’s title comes from Antetokounmpo’s Nigerian birth name. The documentary, directed by Rick Famuyiwa (“The Mandalorian”), is available to stream globally for free on YouTube.

The film follows Antetokounmpo meeting family and immersing himself in the scene meeting kids on the basketball court and soccer pitch, dancing, dining, and meeting cousins, uncles, aunts and other relatives. “A lot of people know that I represent the Greek national team, and they call me ‘The Greek Freak,’ but they’ve never seen this side of me,” he told USA TODAY. “My parents are Nigerian. When I was growing up … it was a Nigerian household. I grew up in Nigerian culture.”

Having his mother along made the trip special, Antetokounmpo says. She was “a great storyteller,” he said, relating “everything about the things that they experienced and how hard (his parents’) journey was, from Nigeria going to Greece and how their life was.”

Giannis Antetokounmpo with his mother, Veronica. Their August 2023 trip to Nigeria is captured in the documentary, “Ugo: A Homecoming Story,” available now on YouTube.

Giannis Antetokounmpo has a spicy time in Nigeria

When it came time to feast, Antetokounmpo thought he was prepared for Nigerian food, but he got a surprise at a family gathering. A well-known chef was preparing the food – semolina fufu, jollof rice and pepper soup – and he chimed in, “Pepper soup? Yeah, I eat pepper soup all the time.”

Now, Antetokounmpo admits his mom made it mildly spicy for him and others including Bucks coaches. But at the family gathering in Nigeria he noticed some of the documentary crew trying the food and “they are all wheezing because of the spices,” he said.

But because his relatives are there, Antetokounmpo knew he couldn’t back down. “I can’t be soft. I’m a very competitive guy,” he said. “I cannot be like, ‘I cannot handle this.’ So I’m eating the pepper soup and I’m sweating.”

When asked if he likes it, “I’m like, ‘Yeah,’ but I’m telling my mom, ‘Mama, I need some milk’.”

Giannis Antetokounmpo visits with children during his trip to Nigeria. The August 2023 trip is documented in the film, “Ugo: A Homecoming Story,” available to watch for free on YouTube.

Even after the visit ended, there were highlights. On the return trip, Antetokounmpo and his mother were awaiting the flight back to Europe and she recalled the initial trip she and her husband made from Nigeria. “You know thirty something years ago, when I was sitting in this airport, I was young,” she told him. “I had no idea where I was going. I just wanted something better for you guys.”

She told him she felt “blessed … with this opportunity to be able to come and dance with my brothers and sisters (and) see my relatives that you (got to) meet for the first time.”

“That’s probably one of the best moments ever in my life, for your mom or your parents to appreciate (what you have done). It was very very, very, very humbling,” said Antetokounmpo, who says he has been keeping up with relatives using WhatsApp.

Giannis Antetokounmpo messaging with on WhatsApp during his trip to Nigeria. The August 2023 trip is documented in the film, “Ugo: A Homecoming Story,” available to watch for free on YouTube.

How to watch the new documentary about Giannis Antetokounmpo

You can watch “Ugo,” for free on YouTube and on Amazon Prime Video in select markets. Nigerian American director Famuyiwa previously made the 2022 Magic Johnson documentary, “They Call Me Magic,” which you can stream on Apple TV+. Famuyiwa left Nigeria as a teen and the filming was his first return since.

Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks against the Indiana Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Jan. 03, 2024, in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Here are some other programs about Giannis

Want to know more about Giannis Antetokounmpo, his family, his life story and his NBA career so far. There’s several other videos and a feature-length documentary called Giannis: The Marvelous Journey, set to premiere on February 19 on Prime Video. The film also marks the launch of Antetokounmpo’s new media company, Improbable Media.

Giannis Antetokounmpo in the upcoming feature-length documentary “Giannis: The Marvelous Journey.”

Here’s three other videos you can watch now:

• “Rise” (2022) is a full-length documentary on the story of the Antetokounmpo brothers growing up in Greece and making their way to the NBA (watch on Disney+).
• “Naija Odyssey” (2022), is a short documentary (12 minutes), also produced with WhatsApp, with Giannis Antetokounmpo detailing his life story (watch on Prime Video).
• “Finding Giannis” (2019), a TNT-produced short (21 minutes) detailing how Antetokounmpo was discovered (watch on YouTube).

Follow Mike Snider on X and Threads: @mikesnider & mikegsnider.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA star Giannis journeys to his roots in Nigeria in new documentary: How to watch