It’s been a roller coaster offseason for Milwaukee Bucks fans, who have been waiting for the final word on the future of superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. For a while, it seemed that Giannis was willing to return to the Bucks next season, though a new report calls that into question.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reports that Giannis Antetokounmpo is still weighing his options and is undecided about his future in Milwaukee.
“He’s still in his process of evaluating – asking himself some hard questions.” @ShamsCharania on Giannis’s future in Milwaukee. #fearthedeer pic.twitter.com/PC5MvLObiM
— ESPN Milwaukee (@ESPNMilwaukee) August 4, 2025
That is concerning, even though it doesn’t directly state that Giannis plans to demand a trade.
Still, his being undecided about whether he will stay in Milwaukee suggests that the Bucks didn’t actually do enough to impress him this summer. That should put the Bucks on high alert.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is keeping the Bucks on their toes
At this point in the summer, Giannis will likely wait until around the trade deadline to evaluate whether the Bucks have what it takes to compete. That gives them time to see if their offseason moves will pay off.
It’s debatable whether Milwaukee has gotten better this offseason by adding Myles Turner and Cole Anthony and bringing back most of their roster.
Even so, they made a couple of risky gambles. One being them waiving Damian Lillard and stretching his contract over the next five seasons, which freed them up to sign Turner.
Another being them letting Brook Lopez leave in free agency. Both moves made the Bucks significantly younger and could pay off, but they still add an air of uncertainty.
The Bucks are running out of time to convince Giannis to stay
It’s entirely possible that the Bucks could still be good enough to end up as a top-four team in the Eastern Conference. With a top 3 player in the NBA and a weak conference, they can make a deep playoff run.
Even so, if Giannis doesn’t think that he can win another championship in Milwaukee, then that could be a moot point. That could give opposing teams the daylight they need to make a run at Giannis.
There will be plenty of teams lining up to try and land him. But if he wants out of Milwaukee, then he will likely have a small list of teams that he’d be willing to be traded to.
The Bucks are under no obligation to trade him if it gets to that point, and hopefully it doesn’t. However, with Shams’ recent reporting, it sounds as though Giannis isn’t quite convinced he will finish his career with the Bucks.
