Giannis Antetokounmpo reiterates he’ll leave Bucks to win another title ‘if there’s a better situation’

rewrite this content material with complete period and stay HTML tags Giannis Antetokounmpo loves taking part in for the Milwaukee Bucks, however he loves competing for NBA championships extra. That was once his message previous this offseason in an interview with the New York Times’ Tania Ganguli, and once more in a contemporary look on “48 Minutes,” a podcast hosted by way of former Bucks assistant trainer Ross Geiger. “At the end of the day, I am a winner,” Antetokounmpo stated (on the 23:26 mark of the podcast). “I want to be a winner. Contracts, fame, status, comfort zone does not matter to me. What matters the end of the day is that thing right there.” Then he pointed to the Larry O’Brien Trophy in the back of him. “That’s what matters. And I don’t want to be able to get stuck in this lifetime to keep on talking about the same story: ‘Oh, we went to Game 6 in the NBA Finals, we won. We were down 2-0, we came back, we won four games.’ I’m tired of hearing the same story over and over again.”He persisted:”I feel like people get stuck on that — which is unbelievable, it’s great, I know people are excited, I know that we hadn’t won a championship for 50 years — but at the end of the day, I want to create new memories. I want to win another championship. We talk about Hakeem [Olajuwon, with whom Antetokounmpo plans to work out before the season starts], he has two championships. The moment I win a second championship, then maybe I can be compared to Hakeem. Right now, I cannot be compared to Hakeem. He has two, I have one. Let me just say it as simple as I can. “But on the finish of the day, if the Milwaukee Bucks group — which is similar factor I say each and every unmarried yr I’ve been with the Bucks — so long as we’re in for a championship, so long as no one’s relaxed, so long as everyone’s sacrificing the same quantity of time and sweat and blood that I’ve sacrificed for this town to win a championship, we’re all excellent. The second I believe like persons are complacent and they are OK — as a result of on the finish of the day, that is the NBA, you might be sorted. You keep in a five-star resort, you consume the most productive meals, lobsters. You cross and … drink wine. I do not drink, however . You get in a constitution, your aircraft. On the fifteenth and the first, you get your paycheck. Everybody is relaxed. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. No manner, no manner. By being relaxed, I can’t achieve my complete doable. As you guys have noticed, annually I take a look at to get better. Better annually. Every yr, that is the manner I’ve for the sport and that is the reason the manner I’ve for lifestyles. I do not want to be relaxed. I would like us to win another championship. “But at the end of the day, I talk too much and the game is played, it’s not talked. But 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. But the moment I feel like people are not as committed as I am to get that golden thing in the back, I am not. It’s more than the money, it’s more than the fame, it’s more than the lobsters, it’s more than the charter flights, private flights. For me, it’s all about that [trophy]. And I want that. “So as I stated, if the Milwaukee Bucks are at the similar web page for the remainder of my profession, nice. If now not, I’ve to win. I’ve to win. And I believe the town and folks will comprehend it. Because I’m probably the most aggressive guys, and I’ve given the entirety that I will for the town of Milwaukee. I bleed inexperienced. I’m if truth be told dressed in the Milwaukee Bucks [shirt] in this interview. I’m if truth be told dressed in that and the shorts, and I’m if truth be told about to cross to mattress. So I’m a Milwaukee Buck. But most significantly, I’m a winner. I would like to win. And I’ve to do no matter it takes for me to win. And if there’s a better scenario for me to win the Larry O’Brien, I’ve to take that better scenario.” Antetokounmpo’s comments make for big news because he is one of the best players on the planet (No. 2 on CBS Sports’ recently published Top 100) and he can become a free agent in 2025. They are not, however, unusual or unorthodox. Typically, NBA superstars expect to compete for championships, and the teams that employ them feel a responsibility to surround them with the talent necessary to do that. The language that Antetokounmpo uses — commitment, sacrifice, being uncomfortable — is particular to him, but his perspective isn’t all that different from Damian Lillard’s. If you’re a franchise player, you want to believe that your franchise is on the same page as you are.In this case, it is difficult to separate Antetokounmpo’s comments from Milwaukee’s current situation. It has a new coach, Adrian Griffin, and an aging roster. It re-signed 32-year-old forward Khris Middleton and 35-year-old center Brook Lopez this summer, but 33-year-old guard Jrue Holiday’s future is unclear. Holiday has a player option for 2024-25, so he could hit free agency in less than a year. He’s also eligible to sign an extension in February, but he said in 2022 that he was planning to retire when this contract expires. Provided that the Bucks’ core players stay healthy and productive this coming season, they could be in the mix for the title. They lost in the first round against the Miami Heat last season, but before that compiled the league’s best regular-season record. There is no clear roadmap, though, for Milwaukee’s front office office to sustain the success of the past five seasons for, say, the next five. It has either missed or traded all of its first-round picks during this run, with the possible exception of MarJon Beauchamp, a 6-foot-7 wing who was drafted No. 24 in 2022 and, according to Griffin, will have to earn a spot in the rotation. Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe. Thanks for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox. Sorry! There was an error processing your subscription. Antetokounmpo has wanted the Bucks to be all-in on winning for years, which is completely unsurprising coming from a future Hall of Famer in his prime. It is also unsurprising, though, that going all-in has left them without a stable of young, improving players that could make their medium- to long-term future look brighter. If it were easy to find gems outside of the lottery and on the scrap heap, then everybody would do it. This is a challenge for any team in win-now mode, and the pressure increases whenever a star nears the end of his contract.In a way, Milwaukee’s predicament reinforces how remarkable its rise was in the first place. The Bucks whiffed on a No. 2 overall draft pick (Jabari Parker in 2014) and a No. 10 draft pick (Thon Maker in 2016) but built a perennial contender anyway because the skinny 18-year-old drafted No. 15 out of the Greek second division turned out to be transcendent, the throw-in from the Brandon Jennings-Brandon Knight trade turned into an All-Star and the 30-year-old big man who signed for the bi-annual exception reinvented himself as one of the league’s best rim protectors. Hey, if the Bucks just pull something like that off again, there’s nothing to worry about. 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