Report: Giannis aired ‘concerns’ about Bucks’ chances to contend for a title

The Milwaukee Bucks have long employed one of the best players in the world — superstar big man Giannis Antetokounmpo — yet ever since the team won a title in 2021, it has had little playoff success despite having a player of his caliber.

After all, Milwaukee’s most recent playoff series victory came all the way back in the 2022 NBA Playoffs, and the team has gotten booted in the opening round of the playoffs in every one of the last three years. Given the Bucks’ struggles in the playoffs over recent years, it shouldn’t come as a major shock that Antetokounmpo “aired his concerns” about their chances of contending for a championship not long ago.

“While [Jon] Horst expressed his confidence in the Bucks’ roster and his moves, Antetokounmpo aired his concerns about whether this team could truly achieve championship contention, and he wanted to explore whether there would be an alternative path forward for both the team and player, league sources said,” Shams Charania wrote.

“In the end, Antetokounmpo returned to Milwaukee for the start of the 2025-26 season. With Antetokounmpo participating at EuroBasket, the Bucks reached an agreement in late August to bring back his brother Thanasis [Antetokounmpo] on a guaranteed one-year, $2.9 million deal. At least for the moment, the sides had found a common ground to stay together.”

Giannis Antetokounmpo has debatably squandered many of his prime years playing for majorly flawed Bucks teams. Milwaukee has had a sizable talent deficit for quite a while now, and its ownership has had challenges adding the right amount of depth around the two-way superstar in recent years.

The Bucks are also perhaps worse on paper heading into the 2025-26 campaign compared to last season now that guard Damian Lillard is back with the Portland Trail Blazers. Milwaukee waived him after he went down with an Achilles injury during the team’s brief time in the 2025 NBA Playoffs.

Even in a weak East where plenty of teams are expected to take a step back, the Bucks don’t project to contend in the conference in the coming season. They once again are majorly lacking in talent behind the Greek native despite adding center Myles Turner to the fold this offseason. The Bucks didn’t do enough to address their unimpressive depth chart at the guard spots in light of Lillard’s departure.

Charania’s latest report and other tea leaves from back in the offseason suggest that Giannis Antetokounmpo might be playing for another one of the NBA’s 30 teams sooner rather than later.