Before he was an MVP and an NBA champion, Giannis Antetokounmpo was a raw, skinny, largely unknown prospect, dismissed by half the league until the Bucks made him the 15th pick of the 2013 draft. That’s the moment most NBA fans got their introduction to the springy kid with the challenging last name.

We all know how the story unfolds from there—a gradual, spectacular transformation from draft-day project to global superstar, from anonymous Greek import to the Greek Freak, one of the most dominant players of his era.

And yet the most compelling story about Giannis’s rise is the one that precedes all that: about how his parents left Nigeria for Greece in search of a better life, about the financial struggles and racism the Antetokounmpos endured there, and about the familial bonds that pulled them through.

That’s the story depicted in “Rise,” now streaming on the Disney+ service. Giannis (played convincingly by Uche Agada) serves as an executive producer on the film. His brother Thanasis and mother Veronica served as consultants. The three of them, as well as brothers Alex and Kostas, joined SI’s Crossover podcast this week to discuss the film. 

The following transcript is an excerpt from the podcast. Listen to the full episode on podcast players everywhere or on SI.com.

(Both the questions and answers have been edited for clarity.)