With Wednesday afternoon's rumors surrounding Giannis Antetokounmpo, it's becoming more obvious to Milwaukee Bucks fans that their franchise star might be about to join a depressing list: the NBA mega-stars that tried so hard to make it work with the team that drafted them, but eventually had to leave for their own good.
This is not an uncommon path for stars in the NBA to take. We've seen it happen many times. One of the most fitting examples is a guy like DeMarcus Cousins, who loved playing in Sacramento but grew resentment for the Kings organization and eventually ended up being traded due to the unworkable nature of the position he was in.
Then if you want to think about a lesser example with an even bigger name, we can consider LeBron James. He of course eventually returned to his hometown team and won them a championship (thus the "lesser" distinction), but his first stint in Cleveland ended because he tried year after year to make things work but realized he was going to have more success elsewhere.
It's not like the Bucks haven't tried their best to make things work with Giannis, either. They had two gigantic front office wins in getting him Jrue Holiday and Damian Lillard as supporting pieces. The first of which obviously leading to a championship, but the second ending up as a disappointment in the grand scheme of things.
Giannis Antetokounmpo could join an unfortunate historical list
We all know it's hard to make things work when you just don't have the right roster construction in place, and that's what plagued the Bucks ever since they won the 2021 NBA championship. But even through all the struggles, Giannis has been slow to run from the challenge. He has repeatedly called Milwaukee "his city" and talked about his desire to be like the past legends that remained with one team for their whole career.
But over time, repeated frustrations have a way of eroding those aspirations. What is likely happening right now is that Giannis is looking around the league at his peers like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic, and noticing the kind of success they're achieving on a team level.
Of course, the last thing Antetokounmpo wants to do is feel like he's wasting his prime years on a non-contending team. The grass isn't always greener on the other side, but there comes a point where you look around and realize you're on the outside of the party looking in.
That may be the reality he now faces, and it's hard to blame him for exploring a new path. Every superstar reaches a moment of reckoning, and for Giannis, that moment may finally be arriving in Milwaukee.