"MJ played 15 years, won six titles - the other nine years, was it a failure?" - A frustrated Giannis Antetokounmpo gives a passionate response after the #1 seeded Milwaukee Bucks get eliminated in the first round

Giannis was not in a cheerful mood after the game.

© Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports

Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo was not in an amicable mood, and understandably so. After all, his Bucks—owners of the league’s best record after the regular season and the odds-on favorite to win the NBA title season—had just been eliminated from the NBA Playoffs by the eighth-seeded Miami Heat. And so, when asked by a reporter if the season was an abject failure, Giannis got testy and tried his very best to keep composed.

Steps to success

Giannis then took a deep breath before answering that no, the season was not a failure. He then went on to cite Michael Jordan’s struggles during his early years in the league and how Jordan’s resilience paved the way for him to become one of the greatest basketball players of all time.

"It's not a failure; it's steps to success," Giannis said. "There's always steps to it. Michael Jordan played 15 years, won six championships. The other nine years was a failure? That's what you're telling me?"

Giannis didn't like @eric_nehm's question about whether the season was a failure and went long in his answer pic.twitter.com/1gZkuf7vkC

— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) April 27, 2023

No failure in sports

Giannis went on to describe the simplistic nature of the game in that one was going to win while the other was going to lose.

"It's a wrong question; there's no failure in sports. There's good days, bad days. Some days you're able to be successful, some days you're not. Some days it's your turn, some days, it's not your turn. And that's what sports is about. You don't always win. Sometimes other people win. And this year, somebody else is going to win, simple as that."

HEAT TAKE DOWN THE BUCKS ‼️

NO. 8 SEED MIAMI ADVANCES TO THE EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS pic.twitter.com/673gyCgQi0

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 27, 2023

Words fail in describing how disappointing this result was for the Milwaukee Bucks. They had an NBA title in sight but lost track of a rolling Miami Heat squad that had their sights squared on unseating the top seed.

Giannis Antetokounmpo: "They were playing to beat us and we were playing to win a championship....We were a little bit ahead of ourselves, to be honest."

— Eric Nehm (@eric_nehm) April 27, 2023