NBA Trade Rumors: ‘No Way In Hell’ Giannis Antetokounmpo Stays With Milwaukee Bucks, Says Former GM


Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo has shown his potential to become a superstar since he entered the league in 2013. He continues to show improvements in his game every year, and as of now, no one can deny the fact that Antetokounmpo deserves to be the face of the Bucks’ franchise. Their decision to give Antetokounmpo a massive contract extension in the summer of 2017 showed that they viewed the “Greek Freak” as the player who can end their decades of title droughts.

Per Spotrac, Giannis Antetokounmpo is under contract with the Bucks until the 2020-21 NBA season. Despite the rumors and speculation surrounding him, the 23-year-old power forward has said in numerous occasions that he intends to spend the rest of his NBA career in Milwaukee. However, there are still some people who believe that Antetokounmpo will be leaving the Bucks to play somewhere else.

In his past interviews about max-contract negotiations, Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype revealed that some NBA executives and agents used Giannis Antetokounmpo as a perfect example of a player who is poised to leave a small-market team. A former general manager reportedly told Kennedy that there is “no way in hell” Antetokounmpo will stay with the Bucks for his second deal.

“On that first deal, you’re the only one able to give him the life-changing money, for the most part, and a guy is typically going to take the life-changing money no matter who he is,” the former GM said. “On the second contract, if a player is getting a max contract then that probably means there is more than one team willing to offer that same deal. Market definitely matters. In the first max contract [when a player is restricted], it doesn’t matter much. In the second deal, you know there’s only certain places a guy will go.”

As of now, Giannis Antetokounmpo looks determined in helping the Bucks win an NBA championship. In the 75 games he played last season, Antetokounmpo succeeded in raising his game, averaging 26.9 points, 10 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.4 blocks on 52.9 percent shooting from the field, and 30.7 percent from beyond the arc. However, even if Antetokounmpo establishes a better performance next season, it’s still hard to imagine seeing the Bucks challenging powerhouse teams like the Boston Celtics and the Toronto Raptors for Eastern Conference supremacy.

So far, Antetokounmpo doesn’t see himself wearing a different jersey. However, as the former GM told Kennedy, things are expected to change when he becomes an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2021. If the Bucks fail to reach their goal in the next three years, there is a possibility that Antetokounmpo will consider reevaluating his future in Milwaukee.

Share this article: NBA Trade Rumors: ‘No Way In Hell’ Giannis Antetokounmpo Stays With Milwaukee Bucks, Says Former GM
More from Inquisitr