Newly crowned NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo has confirmed he will play for Greece at this year’s Basketball World Cup in China

The 24-year-old Milwaukee Bucks star confirmed the news in a statement saying:  he hasn’t “talked to the coach about which position I’ll be playing … the important thing is to play.”

“Whether I play the 1 (point guard) or the 5 (center), I don’t care,” Antetokounmpo said. “I’m a basketball player. I want to help the team any way I can.”

The World Cup takes place from Aug. 31-Sept. 15 and Greece is one of the 32 qualifiers.

 

Giannis Antetokounmpo was born in Greece to Nigerian migrant parents. He was recently crowned Most Valuable Player ahead of Paul George of the Oklahoma City Thunder and James Harden of the Houston Rockets.

The basketball star received 941 points and 78 first-place votes in the balloting ahead of Harden who finished second with 776 points and 23 first-place votes.