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Giannis Antetokounmpo may be tired of answering questions about whether he will remain with the Milwaukee Bucks, but the storyline isn’t going anywhere this NBA season.
Sam Amick of The Athletic reported on the situation Sunday and broke down different potential landing spots even if “the Bucks have been signaling a strong interest in upgrading their roster (again) around Antetokounmpo rather than welcoming trade calls for him” ahead of his 2027-28 player option.
There also doesn’t appear to be a surefire suitor.
Amick noted the Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets “don’t appear eager to make that sort of monumental move at the moment,” while teams such as the Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, Golden State Warriors, Atlanta Hawks and Toronto Raptors “all bring complications when it comes to satisfying the Bucks’ lofty desires in a potential deal.”
Perhaps no team has been as connected to Antetokounmpo as the New York Knicks, but Amick reported they “are fully invested in their current crop of title-contending talent.”
It leaves Antetokounmpo’s future cloudy at best, which will likely lead to even more questions even if he wasn’t pleased with being asked if he was happy to be in Milwaukee following Saturday’s win over the Chicago Bulls (5:15 mark).
“I’m here. I’m here. I’m here,” he said. “Don’t ask me that question. I’m here. It’s disrespectful towards myself and my teammates. I wear that jersey every single day. It’s disrespectful towards the organization, my coaching staff, myself and all the people that work hard for me to come out here and say I don’t want to be here. Don’t ask me that question.”
The comments came after he finished with 29 points and eight rebounds in his first appearance since Dec. 3 because of a calf strain.
It was yet another reminder of how drastically his presence can raise the ceiling for any team considering the future Hall of Famer is one of the defining players of his generation.
Given that talent level and the reality he is still playing at such a high level at 31 years old, the Bucks will surely want a significant amount back in any trade.
But finding that suitor may be easier said than done given Amick’s report on where some of the league’s other teams stand.