Giannis 'Made It Very Clear He Is Committed to' Bucks amid Trade Rumors, Says Edens
Milwaukee Bucks governor Wes Edens told reporters at the team's media day on Monday that superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo is committing to staying with the team.
Trade rumors and speculation have swirled around the two-time NBA MVP. Of note, ESPN's Shams Charania dropped a report on Aug. 4 during First Take that certainly raised some questions about Antetokounmpo's future.
"As we sit here on August 4, sources tell me there is nothing set in stone about whether Giannis Antetokounmpo wants to stay in Milwaukee or whether he wants to leave elsewhere. He's been evaluating his future this entire offseason."
Charania first made mention of Antetokounmpo exploring his options outside Milwaukee back on May 12, soon after the Bucks were eliminated from the first round of the playoffs against the eventual Eastern Conference champion Indiana Pacers.
"The two-time NBA MVP has not made any firm decisions on his Bucks future after the franchise's third consecutive postseason exit in the first round, but, for the first time in his career, Antetokounmpo is open-minded about exploring whether his best long-term fit is remaining in Milwaukee or playing elsewhere, league sources told ESPN."
It's clear that Antetokounmpo wants to succeed and compete for championships, as evidenced by recent comments to Harris Stavrou of SPORT24.
The question is whether he'll be able to do that in Milwaukee. The oddsmakers don't have much faith in this Bucks team, which has 65-1 odds to win the NBA Finals, per FanDuel SportsBook. Sixteen teams have shorter odds than the Bucks.
However, Antetokounmpo is still very much in his prime and capable of piloting a team to a championship. He has made the All-NBA First Team each of the past seven seasons. Last year, the 30-year-old averaged 30.4 points on 60.1 percent shooting, 11.9 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 1.2 blocks per game. In short, he's entering his 13th NBA season and showing no signs of slowing down.
So the big question here is how the Bucks perform in 2025-26, and where Antetokounmpo and the team go from there. It's possible Milwaukee competes for a title and that Antetokounmpo stays aboard. It's also possible that the Bucks get stuck in neutral as they have been of late and the trade rumblings pick up again. If it's the latter, teams would be very interested in acquiring Antetokounmpo should he be available.
Antetokounmpo can become a free agent as soon as the 2027 offseason thanks to his 2027-28 player option. If Antetokounmpo doesn't want to re-sign in Milwaukee, then it would obviously behoove the Bucks to trade him before the summer of 2027 in hopes of jump-starting a rebuild.
In the meantime, the Bucks are hoping to bounce back after an abrupt playoff exit. They begin the 2025-26 season on Oct. 22 at home against the Washington Wizards.
