Giannis Says Bucks Contract Extension Will Allow Focus to Be on Basketball
Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo told reporters that his new three-year, $186 million extension will help keep the focus on basketball and avoid any distractions as the season progresses.
"I knew in my heart that I wanted to stay," Antetokounmpo said, per ESPN's Jamal Collier.
"I don't want people when we lose a game to come back and say, 'Oh, Giannis is being irritated, he doesn't like what's going on, this, that, he's going to leave, blah, blah, blah.' No. The conversation right now is going to be straight basketball."
Antetokounmpo would have been eligible for free agency in 2025 without an extension, but he's now under contract with the team through at least 2027 (with a player option for 2027-28).
The Bucks have great expectations for the 2023-24 season, especially after adding seven-time All-NBA guard Damian Lillard via trade.
Milwaukee is certainly in contention for an NBA title once again, and Antetokounmpo clearly hopes for a second championship after winning one in 2021, so much so that he posited the idea of leaving Milwaukee pre-extension if there were better opportunities for victory elsewhere.
"As long as we play and we approach the game every single day the right way and we all sacrifice for a common goal, I can see myself being with the Milwaukee Bucks for the rest of my career," Antetokounmpo said on the "48 Minutes" Bleav podcast in mid-September (h/t Jenna Lemoncelli of the New York Post).
"But the moment I feel like people are not committed as I am to get that golden thing in the back … I am a Milwaukee Buck, but most importantly, I am a winner. I want to win.
"I have to do whatever it takes for me to win, and if there is a better situation for me to win the Larry O'Brien [championship trophy] I have to take that better situation."
There's clearly a commitment to winning with Lillard now in the fold. The only obstacle remaining for Antetokounmpo to remain in Milwaukee was a new long-term deal, and he now has that, preventing any contract distractions as he approaches this year.
"I think it was the smartest decision I could take for my family, the smartest decision that I could take for basketball," Antetokounmpo said. "Like it's off the table now. I don't have to think about it and just play basketball."
Antetokounmpo also noted that the extension agreement allows the focus to be on basketball for his teammates and the organization as well.
"I want to be here, right? There's no secret in that, everybody knows that," Antetokounmpo said. "I stress a lot of people out. And I don't want to be the reason that a lot of people are stressed out because my life is really stressed out and I know how I feel. So, if I can make it easier on the organization and my teammates and put us in a better position to win a championship, heck yeah. Let's do it."
The Bucks will open the season on Thursday evening against the Philadelphia 76ers, a team dealing with its own issues right now with star guard James Harden's trade request still standing. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET in Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum.
