Giannis’ agent acknowledges that his player has a decision to make about his future

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future has been up in the air for quite some time and it has inevitably become a hot topic during this start of the campaign. The Bucks forward has always said that if his team contends for the title, he will stay in Milwaukee, but as his squad had a tough first month of the season, speculation erupted once again. 

This time around, we’ve got news coming straight from his agent’s mouth, who provided some clarity on his client’s upcoming decisions. In an interview with the Greek press, Giorgos Panou acknowledged the fact that Giannis needs to make a decision soon. “The end [of the season] will tell,” he said.

“He obviously considers it his home,” he added about the player’s feelings towards Wisconsin. “That’s not up for debate. He has proved it. Every year, every night, people can feel it, too. The truth is that they also have to make a decision, as well as Giannis will decide at the end of the year.”

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s preferred trade destinations could be the Miami Heat or Brooklyn Nets, per @sportsreiter

“A third executive for an Eastern Conference team said they have heard Antetokounmpo's preferred trade destinations would be the Miami Heat or the Brooklyn Nets.”… pic.twitter.com/brwoqR6kLK

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) October 31, 2024

The basketball agent also mentioned the importance of keeping a team’s core intact to build something worthy. “It’s important that the project continues to exist with the specific structure of the team because guys like Brook Lopez and Khris Middleton have contracts similar to Giannis’,” Panou explained.

Not too long ago, Giannis inked a three-year, $175 million extension deal that is set to start next season. This means that the All-Star’s earliest opportunity to become a free agent would come three years from now. “After everything the Bucks have offered, we thought it was fair for them to have a great asset in their hands, like Giannis, for the team to continue to exist,” he added.

A month ago, Antetokounmpo attended an interview with The Athletic’s Sam Amick and discussed his future, recognizing the fact that so many players face uncertainty when the expectations are not met with the results.

“Do you have it in the back of your mind, like, ‘[What] if this year doesn’t go well?’ Yeah, if we don’t win a championship, I might get traded.Yeah, this is the job we live. This is the world we’re living in. It’s everybody,” the 29-year-old said about a player’s reality.

The Bucks superstar didn’t play in their last game against the Heat due to swelling on his knee, but should recover soon

Just an hour before tip-ff on Tuesday night’s clash against Miami, the Milwaukee forward was taken out of his team’s starting lineup and sidelined entirely when the team’s medical staff announced that the player’s knee was still swollen.

“I never know,” his Bucks coach Doc Rivers said not too long before game time and moments after his staff assured the player wasn’t in conditions to compete. “Honestly, that’s breaking news to me, too, right now.”

Antetokounmpo is building another MVP-caliber year this 2024-25 season, putting up averages of 32.4 points, 11.9 rebounds,6.4 assists, 0.6 steals, and 1.4 blocks per match while shooting an incredible 60.8% from the field.

“It’s the profession that we’re in,” he said at the start of the season. “At any given moment, if you don’t succeed, that might be it for us. It was the same way with the previous coaching staff, and the year before, the players before. … If you don’t do a good enough job, you’re out.”