Giannis Antetokounmpo wants to repay All-Star favour to Stephen Curry

Giannis Antetokounmpo wants to repay a favour to Stephen Curry in the NBA All-Star Game.

Golden State Warriors star Curry made Antetokounmpo his first pick in the annual showpiece last year.

Milwaukee Bucks forward Antetokounmpo will act as captain for the first time in his career in the 2019 edition, taking on a side selected by LeBron James.

And, while he has yet to fully nail down his choices, Curry is his ideal first pick.

“I might pick Steph [first] because he picked me first last year, so I’ve got to return the favour,” he told reporters after the Bucks beat the Brooklyn Nets 113-94 on Monday.

“And after that? I don’t know. I think it’s going to be random, but I’m going to try to pick first-year guys and of course [Bucks team-mate] Khris [Middleton].”

“I might pick #StephCurry because he picked me first last year. After that I think it’s going to be random. I want to pick first-year guys, first-year #NBAAllStar guys, and of course #KhrisMiddleton.” pic.twitter.com/YP2mmoittx

— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) February 5, 2019
Antetokounmpo fell narrowly short of a triple-double in a fine all-round performance against the Nets, registering 30 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists.

The win rounded out a fine five-game road trip, which started with defeat against the Oklahoma City Thunder but was followed by four consecutive victories.

“It’s amazing, even though in the OKC game we didn’t play well. I think as a team we played hard and it was a long road trip, just started with a loss,” Antetokounmpo said of the Eastern Conference-leading Bucks’ performances on the road.

“It does feel good. This team is great, we finished our road trip with four wins in a row and it shows a lot about this team and how great we can be.”