The best player in the NBA under the age of 25 – and certainly one of the best, period — is in Dallas Friday night.

And as good as he is now, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo can’t help but shake his head about what he’s seen from Mavericks’ teenage phenom Luka Doncic, who has taken a similar, albeit accelerated, path as the Greek Freak, in some respects. Both came out of Europe with a lot of hype. Both are stars now.

Forgive Antetokounmpo if he can’t resist the temptation to say: I told you so, about Doncic.

“I’m really impressed, but I’m not surprised,” Antetokounmpo told mavs.com after Milwaukee’s shootaround Friday morning. “I thought he was the No. 1 pick. I saw him playing against my brother (Mavericks’ two-way player (Kostas). I think that was two years before the draft. So I knew he was special. I knew he could be really good in this league. And he was my No. 1 pick.”

Antetokounmpo came into the NBA in 2013 and averaged 6.8 points and 4.4 rebounds in his rookie season. He was the No. 15 pick in the 2013 draft – two spots after the Mavericks picked Kelly Olynyk, whom they traded for Shane Larkin.

Now Antetokounmpo is an MVP candidate averaging 27 points, 12.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game.

In his rookie season, Doncic is averaging 20.6 points, 7.1 rebounds and 5.5 assists.

“I was telling my guys in the locker room, he’s going to be good,” Antetokounmpo said. “Watch out. He’s a 6-7, 6-8 point guard. He has a feel for the game, can pass the ball, shoot the ball, smart, has a high IQ. He’s going to get it right away.

“They were like: he’s going to be one of these overseas kids that come over here and don’t play out at the end. I was like, no, he’s different.

“And he’s been doing a great job helping the Mavericks. The sky’s the limit for him.”

Antetokounmpo’s coach, former Atlanta coach and San Antonio assistant Mike Budenholzer, said he’s not sure about any similarities between his star and Doncic.

But he does see what everybody else sees about Doncic.

“It feels like, with what Luka did as a teenager and young professional in Europe, he just seems so much established and played in big games and at high levels,” Budenholzer said. “And it feels like Giannis has kind of come out of nowhere and where Giannis has gotten to is obviously special.

“Luka is so established and well-known at 19. And what Giannis has done over these five or six years has been pretty incredible, but if Luka can make that progress, then it’s, like, scary.”

Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo has another connection with the Mavericks in his brother, who signed a two-way contract before this season.

Giannis said his brother, who is four years younger, is doing great so far in his first NBA season as he spends most of his time with the G-League Texas Legends in Frisco.

“He’s serious about getting better every day,” Giannis said. “And that’s what I care about as the older brother. I’m really proud of the way he’s adjusting to the game. And it’s a learning process for him.

“He has to learn how to take care of his body, how the NBA works, how the G-League works, how to play back-to-backs, how you got to rest. You got to learn all that stuff. But as long as you have the mindset to get better, he’s going to be fine. I always tell him, all you better than a year ago? You are, so you’re doing the right things.”

Twitter: @Esefko