Giannis Antetokounmpo celebrated his 31st birthday on Saturday.
In a message to Chris Haynes via Amazon’s NBA on Prime postgame show Friday night, Antetokounmpo insisted that the Milwaukee Bucks’ 10-15 struggles made him “want to go through the wall and make things work” rather than push for a trade.
The rest of the NBA, meanwhile, remains on Giannis Watch, regardless of what type of message comes from Milwaukee.
Bucks coach Doc Rivers insisted Wednesday that Antetokounmpo “never asked to be traded… ever.” I can share, based on my own reporting, that team officials have been doing their best to operate normally following ESPN’s report earlier this week that Antetokounmpo and his agent Alex Saratsis have reopened discussions with the organization about the player’s future. It’s an approach that Milwaukee has maintained since its unveiling Myles Turner as a marquee free agent in July during a press conference held next to a concourse at the Thomas & Mack Center during the Las Vegas Summer League.
Antetokounmpo, remember, is also sidelined indefinitely due to a calf strain he suffered in the first quarter Wednesday against Detroit, shortly after Rivers’ impassioned pregame remarks. It’s yet another complicated variable for the Bucks, who are 1-7 without Antetokounmpo this season and have relied on him for a league-leading 38.1 percent of their points in the 17 games he’s played (9-8).
The Bucks entered the season thinking Antetokounmpo was all-in until the offseason with no exceptions…along with two of his brothers (Thanasis Antetokounmpo and bidirectional signer Alex Antetokounmpo) on the roster alongside him. Will that hold if Antetokounmpo, as Rivers also acknowledged as a possibility this week, misses more than a month than two weeks and the Bucks continue to sink in the East standings?
This is a question that the entire NBA is asking itself.
So this Sunday, we explain the first diary of the week on the subject from me with a fresh look at various connected situations:
A common refrain you hear from rival teams is that they are still waiting for a clear signal that the Bucks are willing to offer trade deals for Antetokounmpo.
Which hasn’t happened yet.
Another common belief circulating among league leaders:
