Giannis Antetokounmpo might stay with the Bucks no matter what, but winning certainly doesn’t hurt

With the looming free agency of Milwaukee’s superstar, Giannis Antetokounmpo, many feel he will stay no matter what, but winning certainly doesn’t hurt.

Giannis Antetokounmpo is set to become one of the highest-paid players in NBA history. Antetokounmpo’s next contract’s value will represent the success and ever-growing status of the reigning MVP and, if it’s signed with the Milwaukee Bucks, it will give them the ability to continue to dominate the NBA for another five years.

Free agency can be one of the more stressful parts of the NBA season, especially when the conversation surrounds superstars. Free agency has the power to leave people disappointed and spark excitement, with the scale tipping in either direction based on the arrival or departure of said player.

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Giannis Antetokounmpo’s looming free agency is by no means a secret. The entire league knows about it and the entire league would welcome him with open arms. As one of the league’s top players, Giannis is set to have an offer for a new contract that is going to be the largest ever in league history. The Milwaukee Bucks have Giannis locked down for one more season at least through 2021, but will hope to re-sign him to a five-year supermax extension this summer.

Over the past few seasons, there have been some of the most shocking moves by All-Star players and some massive contracts being signed. With this new age of moving from team to team, many fans fear that this will happen to their superstar. Most Bucks fans, on the other hand, feel as though Giannis is a part of Milwaukee and think that he will want to be a Milwaukee Buck for his entire career.

Giannis will be eligible for a five-year contract extension with the Bucks at an average annual value of $49.6 million per season, totaling a five-year, $248 million contract. With this massive extension hanging in the balance there has been a question on the minds of all Bucks fans. Will Giannis stay?

Milwaukee has welcomed Giannis and his family with open arms and the city as a whole is incredibly glad to be where the Greek Freak calls home. With the birth of his son, Liam Charles Antetokounmpo, on February 10, it seems as though Giannis is settling down in Milwaukee and will hopefully look to make it his permanent home too.

It seems like the Bucks organization, led by John Horst have taken many steps toward making Giannis as happy as possible. Executives did a great job this offseason, not only by continuing to strengthen the roster, but also by bringing in Giannis’ older brother, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, as a bench player. Giving Giannis the opportunity to play on a winning team with his brother will likely only make him want to stay even more. Along with the signing of Thanasis, the Bucks gave fellow All-Star Khris Middelton a well deserved five-year, $178 million contract this past summer. Putting the pieces around Giannis sets the Bucks up for the highest level of success.

In the 2018-19 season, the Milwaukee Bucks finished the season with the NBA’s best record at 60-22 but were stopped in the Conference Finals by the eventual champions, the Toronto Raptors. This season, the Bucks are once again on pace to finish with the league’s best record currently sitting at 46-7, on pace to win 70 games.

The Bucks know that Giannis has a huge decision in the near future. All signs to this point suggest that Giannis will look to stay in Milwaukee long-term, but if the Bucks want to make sure of that in the months ahead, finishing the season with him raising up the Larry O’Brien trophy certainly won’t hurt.