Giannis needs to stay in Milwaukee

Right now one of the biggest questions in the basketball world is whether Giannis Antetokounmpo will be playing with the Milwaukee Bucks next season. The Bucks had a very disappointing end to their season, losing 4-1 to the Miami Heat in the Conference Semi-Finals. For a team with serious title aspirations and a 56-17 regular-season record, this was not good enough.

This is now the 2nd season in a row where the Milwaukee Bucks have won the top seed in the East but failed to make the NBA Finals. Naturally, questions are now being asked on whether this team and its current structure can go all the way. 

Rumors are now circling that Giannis could leave Milwaukee this summer via trade or next year as a free agent. The Bucks are frantically trying to appease their young super-star with promises going forward, but it may not be enough.

Even though the NBA is a fairly equal league compared to others around the world, it is still fairly unequal in terms of the desirability of the teams that make up the association. Milwaukee can try all it likes, it will never have the pull of a team like the LA Lakers or the Golden-State Warriors. Franchise history, culture and the surrounding city are huge factors when top players decide where to play.

Giannis is at a crossroads in his career. He has two main paths before him; leave or stay.

I think he should do the latter, here’s why.

History

This has happened many times before; a young star on a small-market team faced with a choice of staying loyal or chasing success elsewhere. In fact, we only need to look at LeBron James and his departure from the Cavs in 2010 for some spooky similarities.

LeBron left Cleveland after winning 2 straight MVPs, leading his team to the best record in the NBA in both seasons, lost in the Conference Finals in 2009 and in the Conference Semi-Finals in 2010. 

Giannis has won the last 2 MVPs, lead his Bucks to the best record in the league for both seasons AND lost in the Conference Finals in 2019 and the Conference Semi-Finals in 2020.

The only major difference right now is that LeBron was a free agent at the end of 2010 and Giannis has 1 year left on his contract. The Bucks must look at where Cleveland failed in 2010 and make sure that the same mistakes are not repeated.

Cleveland lost LeBron in 2010 because the front office didn’t think they needed to get LeBron more help. After all, why would a team that had the best record in the NBA for the past 2 years need more help? This lazy approach helped drive James out the door.

Milwaukee needs to address its biggest flaw which is 3-point shooting. The Bucks only ranked 18th in team 3-point % at 35.5%. Having good shooting is vital if Giannis is to be at his best in the playoffs when he is facing much more organized NBA defenses. 

Getting better shooting would really help Giannis going forward and show him that Bucks organisation is fully committed to winning and winning with him.

Legacy

If you were to ask NBA fans around the country and the world “who is a current/former player everyone respects?” You would get the obvious names like Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan, but I’m willing to bet that Dirk Nowitzki’s name would also be mentioned.

Dirk is admired by nearly everyone because he played his entire career (21 seasons) with the team that drafted him, the Dallas Mavericks. He never abandoned ship, he fought for his teammates and fans and after all his struggles he managed to win a ring in 2011 with one of the most impressive postseason runs we’ve seen in a long time.

How loyal you are is a huge part of your legacy, and Giannis has a chance to become a legend like Dirk. At 25 years old, Giannis has had a far better career than Dirk had at the same age. Giannis will likely finish his career ahead of Dirk in most people’s all-time rankings. If Giannis stays in Milwaukee, a small-market team, and manages to win just one title he will go down as their greatest player, even ahead of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Whether he stays or not is up to him, the franchise is at his mercy. The Greek Freak is totally in control, and people notice how players react in such circumstances. Giannis will be a Hall of Fame player after he retires, there’s already no doubt about that, but if he wants to be a true legend of the game and to the city of Milwaukee, then he should sign a long-term deal and say, “hell yeah I’m in”.