Getty Milwaukee Buck star Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry of the Miami Heat.
The Miami Heat are chasing an NBA championship but could be in the hunt for a different prize in the offseason: Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo. Of course, the Heat just bounced the Bucks in five games to end top-seeded Milwaukee’s season on a sour note.
According to the oddsmakers at Sportsbetting.ag, the Heat would be the favorites to land the Greek Freak at +300 if he were to request a trade. However, Antetokounmpo doesn’t seem to be overly eager to get out of town, especially after his “failure” rant following Game 5.
Some speculation began to swirl when ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on the April 27 episode of “NBA Today” that Antetokounmpo was “unlikely to extend his contract this summer.” But there has been no reporting that suggests Antetokounmpo or the Bucks have any desire to move on from each other.
In a hypothetical scenario, if Miami were to swing a deal for Antetokounmpo, then they’d have him secured for at least two seasons because the five-year, $228 million extension that he signed in December 2020 runs through the end of the 2024-25 season, with a player option in 2025-26.
A two-time league MVP and former league champion, Antetokounmpo averaged 31.1 points, 11.8 rebounds and 5.7 assists in 63 games while shooting 55.3% from the field, 27.5% from beyond the arc and 64.5% from the free-throw line.
Giannis Antetokounmpo Wanted to Guard Heat’s Jimmy Butler
Butler lit up Antetokounmpo’s Bucks in Games 4 and 5 of their opening-round series. “Playoff Jimmy” scored 56 points in Game 4 and then followed that up with 42 more in the closeout victory.
After his team’s early exit, the Greek Freak told reporters that Milwaukee didn’t adjust to Butler well enough.
“No, we didn’t,” Antetokounmpo said via CBS Sports YouTube channel. “I think Jrue [Holiday] did his best, but at the end of the day, he gets tired, you know? He’s got to rebound the ball, he’s got to pass the ball, he’s gotta score … he’s gotta guard Jimmy. Like — you get tired.”
The former Defensive Player of the Year was later asked if he would’ve liked to guard Miami’s No. 22, to which he replied “yes.”
“Out of respect, you gotta let the coach make the adjustment,” Antetokounmpo continued. “We have our best defender on him. There were conversations with Jrue. whenever he gets tired, I can take him. He’s so competitive. He plays so hard. He wants to take the challenge. But at the end of the day, I wish I could guard him more. I don’t think as a team we made the right, or we didn’t make as many, adjustments as we could against him.”
Heat’s Jimmy Butler to Jrue Holiday: ‘I Own You’
Maybe Holiday should’ve taken Giannis up on his offer. Towards the end of Game 5, he was not only getting abused by Butler defensively, but also verbally.
The six-time All-Star was cooking Milwaukee’s No. 21 and letting him know.
After losing Holiday for an easy layup with just over 2:30 to go in regulation, Butler turned to Holiday, got in his face, and screamed “I own you.”
To make things worse, he wasn’t lying. NBA.com’s matchup tracking data shows that Miami’s star wing had his way with Holiday all night, converting 7-of-12 attempts for 17 points, while he was the primary defender.