For now, the Milwaukee Bucks are probably (and finally) out of the woods regarding Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future.
After stretching and waiving Damian Lillard’s contract, then signing a big-time frontcourt partner in Myles Turner, the Bucks seem like they’ve done enough to appease Antetokounmpo. Factor in a temporarily weaker Eastern Conference on paper after injuries to Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton, and it gets easier to talk yourself into the kind of Bucks competence that keeps Antetokounmpo happy. Well, at least for the next two years before the superstar has a decision to make on a player option in the summer of 2027.
But we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.
That didn’t stop ESPN’s Shams Charania from continuing to stoke the Antetokounmpo fire in Milwaukee.
In a Monday morning appearance on First Take, Charania claimed that Antetokounmpo is still undecided about his future in Milwaukee. To be clear, that’s not from a long-term perspective. That’s from the perspective of whether Antetokounmpo will even want to be in Milwaukee this season. Hmm. While I can’t say these rumors are false with absolute certainty, they don’t pass the smell test.
Given where we are in the NBA offseason, it’s hard to believe that Antetokounmpo is really still pondering the near future in Milwaukee.
After the conclusion of the draft and free agency, all 30 rosters around the league are more or less set in stone. Anyone who would ostensibly even have the space to trade for Antetokounmpo now probably has much less flexibility to do so without moving mountains around their salary cap sheet. Everything has been accounted for, and it would be a huge headache to dig things up again. We’re also roughly two months out from the start of NBA training camps. That sort of short turnaround timeline doesn’t lend itself to one of the best players in the world making a seismic change in his career at this specific point.
This new rash of an Antetokounmpo rumor reeks of pot-stirring for engagement, but I can’t prove it. Not without some help, anyway.
That’s where the Bucks’ social media team came in. They posted a single yawn emoji on their X account, which seems pretty clearly in response to the (manufactured) fervor about Antetokounmpo still wanting to leave the franchise right now:
Suffice it to say, if the Bucks aren’t publicly concerned about Antetokounmpo leaving like this, then no one else should bat an eyelash over contrary reports. It’s all conjecture until someone from Antetokounmpo’s camp or the Bucks’ camp lends more credence to it.
Has Shams Charania previously pushed seemingly unfounded Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors?
Yes, actually!
Way back in early June, Charania claimed that the Antetokounmpo trade saga would extend well into the summer regardless of any extenuating factors. Later that day, Antetokounmpo posted how he missed former longtime NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski, which was an apparent shot at Charania’s reporting. The Bucks responding like this to another Charania report is right in line with how their summer has gone with one of the best players they’ve ever rostered.