Giannis Antetokounmpo Files to Trademark ‘Greek Freak’ for Online Gambling Use

His client plays basketball, but Alex Saratsis is covering the bases.

Saratsis' team filed to trademark the phrase "Greek Freak" on behalf of his client Giannis Antetokounmpko, the Milwaukee Bucks forward and favorite to win this year's NBA MVP, for use with an "online gambling website," among other things.

"With the way things are evolving, we'd rather get ahead of things than be behind," Saratsis said. "If we can one day use it then we will, if not, we will move on."

The trademark filing was first discovered by trademark lawyer Josh Gerben.

The odds that Giannis will be able to use a trademark any time soon are unlikely, at least within the state of Wisconsin.

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Wisconsin is expected to be one of the last states in the nation to legalize sports gambling due to the fact that it is outlawed by the state constitution and tribal influence in the state wants to keep status quo in the gaming space.

The NBA was the first major sports league to partner with a betting operator when it signed MGM to a league-wide deal in July 2018, just two months after the Supreme Court repealed PASPA and states could make their own decisions as to whether or not to legalize gambling.

The NBA also allows teams in states that have legalized sports betting to sign sponsorships with betting partners. Players are not allowed to be associated with any gambling establishment.

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Giannis currently has one trademark for the "Greek Freak," which he picked up in 2018. That trademark covers the phrase on clothing, including T-shirts, sweatshirts, jackets and jerseys. Giannis also has a trademark pending for "Greek Fr34K," a reference to his No. 34 jersey.

That trademark seeks to protect the phrase for use on everything from cologne to nutritional supplements, from cereal to non-alcoholic beverages.

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