Comedian Hasan Minhaj issues a challenge to Skip Bayless after Giannis comment on 'The Daily Show' taken out of context

Not everyone found Giannis Antetokounmpo's appearance on "The Daily Show" on Feb. 27 endearing, though it required some careful editing to find a controversial angle.

The Milwaukee Bucks star appeared on the show Monday, guest hosted by comedian Hasan Minhaj, with a chance to highlight the Charles Antetokounmpo Family Foundation in honor of his late father and also have a little fun. The closing segment featured Antetokounmpo looking in the camera and trash-talking rivals, a bit Minhaj orchestrated to engineer some faux spice from the famously humble Bucks star.

One such barb, directed at Kevin Durant, caught the attention of Fox Sports hosts Shannon Sharpe and Skip Bayless, who discussed the clip in earnest on their talk show, "Undisputed," on Tuesday, criticizing the words and suggesting it would cause ire with the Phoenix Suns superstar. Minhaj fired back on Wednesday in an impassioned clip, criticizing the show's lack of context around the clip and challenging Bayless to take a different approach.

"If Skip really cares about the athletes and the sport, then I think if he's going to benefit off the grift, then I think he should make a donation to the Charles Antetokounmpo Family Foundation," Minhaj said. "You've got to cleanse those pockets, baby."

What did Giannis Antetokounmpo say on 'The Daily Show'?

Minhaj sets the table by indicating he's loaded trash talk into the teleprompter for Antetokounmpo to repeat to the camera, tackling league stars LeBron James, Durant, Luka Dončić and Nikola Jokić. The bit gets funnier when it's clear Antetokounmpo isn't comfortable carrying out the bit entirely, choosing instead to couch his comments with follow-up praise.

"I know talking trash isn't your strength," Minhaj said. "That's my strength. So I wrote you some trash."

The heavily-edited interview between Minhaj and Antetokounmpo doesn't even mention Durant in the full episode available on Comedy Central's website, but the extended interview released online has more.

"You keep joining super teams to win NBA titles," Antetokounmpo said to the camera as if he was speaking to Durant, unable to contain his smile. "How about we work out together sometime so I could teach you to carry your own team?"

Immediately, Antetokounmpo broke character and backtracked, searching for the proper camera to say, "KD, you're one of the best scorers to ever play this game. I respect your game. You've led by example for 15 years. You were my favorite player growing up."

Minhaj expressed humorous exasperation with Antetokounmpo's unwillingness to fully commit to the bit.

"I hate this!" he exclaims to comedic effect. "Entertain me!"

What did Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe say on 'Undisputed?'

Bayless and Sharpe only played the clip showing the first line and didn't air the follow-up of Antetokounmpo heaping praise on Durant.

"It's supposed to be cute, it's supposed to be tee-hee funny ... and it's just not to me either, because it's unfair to Kevin Durant," Bayless said. "(Durant) is the thinnest-skinned superstar I've ever closely observed, so he is not going to be pleased, and I'm waiting for him to fire back five tweets."

Bayless, who has long had a reputation for outlandish and sometimes reductive takes, acknowledged that the jokes were written for Antetokounmpo but that he "had to sign off on it." Sharpe, actually, seemed even more bothered.

"I don't think it was cute," Sharpe said, taking the joke's content at face value and arguing that Antetokounmpo couldn't "carry" a team until Jrue Holiday arrived. "I don't think it was funny. I know damn well Kevin Durant isn't going to think it's funny."

The two spent most of the segment discussing Durant's motivation in 2017 for joining the already-loaded Golden State Warriors, with whom he went on to win two NBA championships. Durant then joined the Brooklyn Nets in what was ostensibly supposed to be another "super team" situation, though one that ended prematurely without any titles.

Durant was traded to Phoenix at the trade deadline and made his Suns debut Wednesday.

How did Hasan Minhaj respond on Wednesday?

Minhaj, who has previously expressed his admiration for Antetokounmpo, defended the star Wednesday and expressed exasperation — entirely serious this time — with the media machine that allowed for such an out-of-context conversation.

He reiterated that Antetokounmpo couldn't bring himself to engage in the trash talk, even as a joke.

"He's this really beautiful human being," Minhaj said. "He's one of the best basketball players in the world, but he has this 'immigrant dad green-card energy.' He has a supermax contract but he's like, 'Are these Subway napkins, can I take these?' It's that juxtaposition that I love about him. He's got so much humility and grace.

"He's a better Muslim than me and he's not even Muslim."

Minhaj chided Bayless for exemplifying why athletes don't even want to appear on late-night talk shows. He closed his remarks with the challenge to donate.

"And if you want to learn more about the Charles Antetokounmpo Family Foundation, I suggest you donate money to that as well," he said. "It's an amazing organization. I'm so proud of Giannis and Thanasis."

Timeline:Giannis Antetokounmpo's injuries during his NBA career and how quickly he returns from them

The Giannis Effect:Milwaukee Bucks superstar has had a unifying impact on city, state and beyond in his 10 seasons

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: The Daily Show's Hasan Minhaj defends Giannis, calls out Skip Bayless