“I need Dame to be Dame, and he needs me to be me,” Giannis Antetokounmpo made one of the most memorable comments about the arrival of his new teammate Damian Lillard. As basic as it may appear, it is a fantastic show of respect from the Greek superstar, who does not expect the former Portland guard to adapt to his style of play; he simply wants him to be himself.

It’s been a wild journey in Milwaukee this week, as Dame finally found a new home after spending his whole veteran career with the Trail Blazers. He’s as excited as ever now that he’s part of a team that can actually compete for the championship.

“It’s public record that I’ve always mentioned, if I could team up with one person, it would be [Antetokounmpo],” Lillard shared. “The kind of attention he’s going to get is only going to make the game easier and more simple for me. And because of the way I do impose myself and how I attack games, he’s going to have the kind of opportunities I think he hasn’t had as well.”

During his first Media Day interview with the Bucks, the 33-year-old recognized this experience represent his best chance to win a ring.

“In my career, in my life, I’ve never been a part of any situation that was not an underdog. From my AAU program… to Weber State… drafted to Portland… I’ve done a lot more overachieving in my career than living up to what was expected,” he said.

Lillard also knows that now the spotlight will be on him, as fans will be expecting to see “Dame Time” perform, but realizes that the first the work must come from hours in the gym and film study.

“When it comes to having some success, I’m a person who wants to get in the mud and make sure I’m doing the things that are going to earn us the right to have that success,” he said. “And [Giannis] is too.”

Giannis stated that he is not attempting to put pressure on the Bucks to sign his extension, but is confident that he will do so next year.

The Greek superstar addressed media questions about why he did not sign a contract extension with the Bucks this summer. He reminded the press that he wasn’t seeking to put pressure on his club because money isn’t as important to him, but he now expects he’ll wind up extending his contract.

“I said it did not make sense to sign a contract right now because money isn’t important, but a lot of [expletive] money is important, so I’m going to sign it next year,” he explained. “I want to be a Milwaukee Buck for the rest of my career as long as we are winning. It’s as simple as that. What do you expect me to say? To be a Milwaukee Buck and be a loser? That’s never going to come out of my mouth.”

Antetokounmpo also mentioned Jrue Holiday’s departure to the Boston Celtics, and recalled his importance to the Bucks winning the title in 2021.

“You always felt good to go to war with [him],” he said. “He’s never going to be replaced. … I wish him the best in his journey with the Boston Celtics – not against us, against the rest of the league.”