Giannis Antetokounmpo will start the 2025-26 season as a member of the Milwaukee Bucks. His brother Thanasis signed a one-year deal worth a reported $2.9 million, effectively eradicating the possibility of the two-time MVP departing the only team he’s known.
It is believed that Giannis did explore options this summer before ultimately deciding on staying, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Thanasis missed the entire 2024-25 season due to a ruptured Achilles suffered in an offseason workout.
Speculation ran rampant that the Bucks falling well short of contention the last few years coupled with Damian Lillard and Brook Lopez’s departure would open the door for Giannis’s potential departure.
Milwaukee will instead look to ride another great Antetokounmpo season as far as it will take them. The Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks are the clear favorites in the East as things stand. Many consider the Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic to be next in line.
In response to the key roster departures, the Bucks have brought in Myles Turner, Cole Anthony, Gary Harris and Amir Coffey as new faces.
Why Has Antetokounmpo Chosen To Stay With Bucks?
There are plenty of logical reasons for Antetokounmpo to depart, as mentioned previously. He has said that he wants to win another championship. The financial circumstances now facing the Bucks and a mediocre roster make it extremely unlikely the team will contend in any of the few years.
Giannis electing to remain in Milwaukee is a decision that comes from the heart. This is someone who grew up in poverty, worked incredibly hard to get an opportunity in the NBA, and it was the Bucks that gave it to him.
Just 18 years old when drafted by the Bucks, all of Giannis’ adult human and professional evolution has come in Milwaukee. This is a city that loves Giannis and he loves them back.
Kobe Bryant is one of his biggest role models and playing his whole career with one team has significant meaning. In Mirin Fader’s ‘Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA MVP,’ the book notes that Giannis prefers the low key elements of Milwaukee to the hoopla that comes with being in a Los Angeles or New York.
Even with all of this, it’s likely speculation will begin once again heading into the summer of 2027. That’s when Antetokounmpo could become an unrestricted free agent.
Giannis will earn $54 million this season and $58.5 million the year after. For 2027-28, he has a player option worth $62.8 million.
