Giannis Antetokounmpo has agreed on a three-year, $186 million
contract extension with the Milwaukee Bucks that includes a player
option in the third season, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Had Giannis waited until next offseason, he could have signed a
four-year, $234 million extension.
Back in August, Antetokounmpo told The New York Times that
“numbers-wise, it doesn’t make sense” to sign an extension before
next offseason. In that same interview, Giannis made it clear that
he wasn’t content on simply winning one championship and wanted to
make sure that the Bucks were committed to contending going
forward.
It certainly seems like the Bucks’ decision to acquire Damian
Lillard from the Portland Trail Blazers changed Giannis’ mind on
inking an extension now.
Antetokounmpo is coming off an impressive season in which
he averaged a career-high 31.1 points along with 11.8 rebounds, 5.7
assists, 0.8 steals and 0.8 blocks while shooting 55.3% from the
field, 27.5% from three-point range and 64.5% from the free-throw
line.
The 28-year-old has emerged as one of the NBA’s best players,
and he has an incredible resume: a championship, two NBA MVPs, a
Finals MVP, seven All-Star nods, seven All-NBA selections, a
Defensive Player of the Year award, five All-Defensive Team
selections and a Most Improved Player award.
Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee to an Eastern-Conference-best 58
wins last season. In 2021, Antetokounmpo led the Bucks to their
first championship in 50 years.
