Giannis Antetokounmpo is under contract with the Milwaukee Bucks through the 2024-25 season with a player option for 2025-26, but he is much more focused on winning than securing his long-term future with the only NBA franchise he has ever known.
"I always envisioned myself to be in Milwaukee for a long time," he said, per Marc J. Spears of Andscape. "And I always say that I want to play 20 years. I want to be like Tim Duncan, like Kobe, all those guys that played with one team for a lot of years and won the championship. But at the end of the day, before loyalty, winning comes first. We are judged on winning. I'm a winner. I want to win."
The future Hall of Famer turned heads in September when he said if there's "a better situation for me to win the Larry O'Brien I have to take that better situation" during an appearance on the 48 Minutes podcast.
NBA on ESPN @ESPNNBA"I'm a Milwaukee Buck, but most importantly I'm a winner. ... If there is a better situation for me to win the Larry O'Brien I have to take that better situation."<br><br>Giannis on his future with the Bucks. <a href="https://t.co/XzucRXtmOv">pic.twitter.com/XzucRXtmOv</a>
He also told Tania Ganguli of the New York Times he wanted to see how the Bucks play under new head coach Adrian Griffin before making any long-term decisions.
"You've got to see the dynamics," Antetokounmpo said. "How the coach is going to be, how we're going to be together. At the end of the day, I feel like all my teammates know and the organization knows that I want to win a championship. As long as we're on the same page with that and you show me and we go together to win a championship, I'm all for it."
Yet those comments all came before the Bucks traded for Damian Lillard.
That is quite the commitment to building a winner around Antetokounmpo, and he told Spears "it's a beginning, it's a start" when discussing the high-profile trade.
He also added some context to his comments from earlier this offseason:
"But when your extension comes around, it's like, 'Oh, he might leave.' No, no, no. It's not the case. I want the best possible team. I want to wake up every single day when I come to work and know that I have a chance to win. And I want the organization to be on the same page and not to be comfortable because we won one [title]. So, what we going to wait 15 more years to win another one? No, no, no way. We have to bring it every single day. I try to bring it every day as much as I can. And I expect the same approach from people next to me."
The formula seems fairly straightforward for the Bucks at this point.
If they win, Antetokounmpo seems likely to stay. If they don't, he may end up elsewhere in the future.
"loyalty" - Google News
October 15, 2023 at 09:20PM
https://ift.tt/SDcRbhP
Giannis Discusses Bucks Contract Extension: 'Before Loyalty, Winning Comes First' - Bleacher Report
"loyalty" - Google News
https://ift.tt/GWfOHTk
https://ift.tt/uURyWwb
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Giannis Discusses Bucks Contract Extension: 'Before Loyalty, Winning Comes First' - Bleacher Report"
Post a Comment