Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo is blogging for EuroHoops again, and his latest concerns his future with the team that drafted him. Antetokounmpo said he doesn't want to go anywhere, though he joked that he'd have to consider if it LeBron James tried recruiting him:
From my side, I feel that I want to be playing in the Bucks. I’m not talking about my next contract. The way I feel now, I want to keep playing for the Milwaukee Bucks for the next 20 years!
You never know how life turns out. Three years ago I was thinking that I might be playing for Filathlitikos forever! All of a sudden, the draft emerged, the NBA, the Bucks and everything that followed. I don’t know how I’ll be feeling and thinking in 2, 3 or more years. Right now I feel like I want to play for the Milwaukee Bucks forever.
…
I’m a guy who doesn’t really care about glamour and big markets. I like to be home all day. I get up in the morning, I take a shower and I go to practice. When I’m finished, the only thing that’s on my mind is to go back home and spend time with my family. I usually feel that I prefer to hide from people.
…
Okay, if LeBron said to me ‘Come to my team and play with me,’ I’d think about it! (laughs) He’s the best player in the world and a member of that exclusive group of the best that have ever played the game. Still, though, the Milwaukee Bucks would come first. They will always be the team that gave me my chance and opened up the doors to paradise.
Bucks fans have to feel warm and fuzzy reading this. They should already be happy, given that they added big man Greg Monroe to their young core and will have Jabari Parker healthy next season, but Antetokounmpo is a huge part of what is being built in Milwaukee. There was no danger that he'd leave soon, anyway, but he did not have to say anything as strong as this.
Of course, there's always a worry that young players who start their careers in small markets will want more when they reach a certain age. Antetokounmpo is still only 20 years old -- how crazy is that? -- and he acknowledged that it's impossible to know how he'll feel a few years from now.
At the moment, though, this is a great sign for the Bucks, who are suddenly looking like they can do some serious damage in the Eastern Conference next season. Especially if Antetokounmpo keeps progressing toward stardom.
