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Eric WoodyardESPN
Giannis Antetokounmpo, NBA vice president, has long-term commitment to the Milwaukee Bucks.
Antetokounmpo agent Alex Saratsis told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that it will be for a full five-year, $ 228 million supermaxi, including disapproval after the fourth year.
“This is my home, this is my city” Antetokounmpo posted on Twitter and Instagram. “I’m blessed to be a part of the Milwaukee Bucks for the next 5 years. Let’s make those years count. The program goes on, we’re going to get it.”
This is my home, this is my city. I am happy to be a part of the Milwaukee Bucks for the next 5 years. Let’s make those years count. The show goes on, let’s face it. 🤎🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/895tCBE9RK
– Giannis Ugo Antetokounmpo (@ Giannis_An34) December 15, 2020
Had he passed on the offer, he would have been an unrestricted free agent next summer and the most important name to hit the market since Kevin Durant in 2016.
Antetokounmpo comes a career year in which he became the third player in league history to win MVP and defensive player of the year in the same season, joining Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon. He also averaged career highs in points (29.5) and rebounds (13.6) to 5.6 assists per game and an efficiency score of 31.9 players, the highest in a season of NBA history, according to ESPN Stats & Information data.
Milwaukee has finished the regular season with the best record in the league each in the last two years, but failed to reach the NBA Finals in either time. In 2019, the Bucks won 2-0 over the Toronto Raptors in the conference final before losing in six games. Last season, Milwaukee didn’t get that far, falling to the Miami Heat in five games during the semifinals of the Orlando Bubble.
Despite all their regular season success, the Bucks have reached the conference finals only once in Antetokounmpo’s seven-year tenure and have not reached the NBA Finals since 1974 with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who eventually asked to be moved from Milwaukee after his sixth place finish. season as a three-time league MVP.
“I think [Antetokounmpo] he should look at his own heart and make a decision based on what’s important to him and his professional life, ”Abdul-Jabbar, who led the Bucks to his lone title in 1971, told ESPN during a trip to Milwaukee in October 2019.
Antetokounmpo was an unknown relative when the Bucks made him the No. 15 pick in the 2013 NBA national draft. Born in Greece to Nigerian parents, Antetokounmpo played in Greece’s second division before joining Milwaukee. He averaged just 6.8 points per game as a rookie, starting 23 games, but in his third year, his average score was up to 16.9 and earned the player’s honors improved. The following year he made his first four All-Star appearances.
Milwaukee reached the playoffs three times in the first five seasons of Antetokounmpo with the team, but was eliminated in the first round each time. In 2018-19, Antetokounmpo was promoted to be named MVP of the league, becoming the first Bucks player since Abdul-Jabbar to win the award while leading the team to its first playoff series victory. since 2001.
Antetokounmpo has improved his scoring average every season he has been in the league, reaching 29.5 last season, when he became the first player since Wilt Chamberlain to average at least 29 points, 13 rebounds and 5 assists over the course of a season. Still, his focus has been on winning that dodging championship.
“It’s simple. You have to be better than you were last year. If you didn’t win everything, you’ll have to improve,” Antetokounmpo said during the September virtual press conference after accepting his MVP trophy. “If you win everything, you have to improve and do it again.”
With teams around the NBA clearing salary cap spaces in hopes of chasing Antetokounmpo next summer, Milwaukee has entered a critical low season in hopes of convincing its best player since Abdul-Jabbar was reunited a solid support cast.
“This is our Super Bowl,” Bucks general manager Jon Horst said Nov. 16. “We work on this every day of every year to have fantastic processes and excellent filters for decision making, we review them and there is confidence.”
Before the free agency, the Bucks agreed on a trade that led to former All-Star Jrue Holiday as part of a four-team deal. A reported trade that would have brought Bogdan Bogdanovic to Milwaukee as part of a sign-and-trade deal collapsed, and the Bucks opted to strengthen their bank, adding DJ Augustin, Bryn Forbes and Torrey Craig as they returned to sign guard Pat Connaughton.
The Bucks also added rookie Jordan Nwora with the No. 45 pick on the draft. Antetokounmpo and star guard Khris Middleton arrived at the front in front of Louisville on draft night with an introductory text message, saying, welcoming the team and telling him that “l ‘goal is a championship here’.
Antetokounmpo, who turned 26 on Dec. 6, joined Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James this season as the only players to win several NBA MVP awards at age 25. He has repeatedly expressed interest in remaining in Milwaukee under the right circumstances.
“I’ve been encouraged all my career in Milwaukee,” Antetokounmpo said after winning his second MVP. “I know we’ve improved every year and I know Milwaukee has fantastic people who see every year the same as every year, which is to play well, improve and win everything.”