Earlier this summer, Giannis Antetokounmpo came out with some contentious comments about potentially leaving the Milwaukee Bucks. The former back-to-back MVP did not exactly say that he was going to demand a trade, but he did hint – pretty strongly at that – at the possibility of walking away if his championship aspirations are not met by the organization.
Be that as it may, Antetokounmpo’s comments were still interpreted in more ways than one. Well, the Bucks talisman has now erased any and all doubt by reiterating his intention to leave Milwaukee.
Giannis Antetokounmpo doubles down on potentially jumping ship
Giannis recently guested on the "48 Minutes" podcast and naturally, he was asked to shed light on his much-talked-about statement. Antetokounmpo did not shy away from his previous comments. Instead, he chose to double down on them with another warning for the Bucks organization:
“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 committed as I am to get that golden thing in the back, I am not.
“I’m a Milwaukee Buck, but most importantly I’m 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 I have to take that better situation.”
The silver lining here is that Antetokounmpo made it clear that he can see himself playing out his career in Milwaukee. However, he gave a very specific caveat, repeating his earlier declaration of jumping ship if and when his title objectives no longer align with those of the team.
It also seems that the superstar sent a message to his teammates here by saying that he will leave at the first opportunity he realizes that “people are not committed as [he is]” to winning another chip. Antetokounmpo is one of the most determined and hardest-working individuals there is in the NBA today and clearly, he wants everyone around him to be on the same page.
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