MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam says he would like to have Giannis Antetokounmpo's future sorted out before next month’s NBA draft.
Haslam spoke Wednesday alongside general manager Jon Horst at a news conference introducing Taylor Jenkins as the Bucks’ coach. Antetokounmpo has spent his entire 13-year career with the Bucks, but it's possible he could leave Milwaukee after a frustrating, injury-marred season.
“I just think before
the draft is a natural time,” Haslam said. “Because if Giannis does play somewhere else, we’ve got to have a lot of assets. That’s Jon’s job to do. And if he’s here, then you build the team differently.”
Antetokounmpo has said repeatedly that he likes playing in Milwaukee but wants to play for a franchise committed to competing for championships. The Bucks went 32-50 this season to snap a string of nine straight playoff appearances.
The Bucks can offer Antetokounmpo a four-year, $275 million contract extension in October. If Antetokounmpo doesn’t sign, he could become a free agent after next season.
Haslam, also a co-owner of the NFL's Cleveland Browns, would like the matter settled long before October. He spoke Wednesday as though the decision rests with the Bucks as much as it does with Antetokounmpo.
“We never had any problem communicating directly with Giannis — at all — and always knew where he stood,” Haslam said. “And I think he always knew where we stood. We’ve had those kind of conversations since the season was over. ... So sometime over the next six or seven weeks, we’ll decide whether Giannis is going to sign a max contract and stay with us, or he’s going to play somewhere else. And Jon and Taylor, along with (co-owner) Wes (Edens) and myself will make that call, and we understand the gravity of that call.”
The Bucks will have a lottery pick this year either in their own spot or in New Orleans’ spot, whichever is less favorable. The draft lottery is Sunday.
Antetokounmpo led the Bucks their first title in half a century in 2021, and he owns virtually all the franchise’s major career records. He won the first of his two straight MVP awards in 2018-19, when Jenkins was an assistant on Mike Budenholzer’s staff.
Horst noted the Bucks have sought input from Antetokounmpo and other players during previous coaching searches but that they didn’t do that this time. Jenkins said he has communicated with Antetokounmpo since he took the job.
“He’s expressed tremendous excitement for me and my family,” Jenkins said. “Obviously, even only being here for one season, he and I established a really good relationship and maintained that respect, even from a distance.”
The 41-year-old Jenkins coached the Grizzlies from 2019-25 and went 250-214, leading them to three straight playoff appearances from 2021-23. Memphis got beyond the first round under Jenkins just once, in 2022, when the second-seeded Grizzlies beat Minnesota before losing to Golden State in the Western Conference semifinals.
Memphis was decimated by injuries in 2023-24 and went 27-55. The Grizzlies fired Jenkins with nine games left in the 2024-25 season and were swept by eventual champion Oklahoma City in the first round of the playoffs.
Jenkins’ success with Memphis made him an attractive head coaching candidate, and he quickly focused on a possible return to Milwaukee rather than waiting to find out if any playoff teams made coaching changes.
He understood it was possible he wouldn't be coaching Antetokounmpo.
“When this opportunity became available, I was like, I know the people,” Jenkins said. “I know what they stand for. I know what their standards are going to be on a day-to-day basis.”
Jenkins will become the Bucks' fourth coach in five seasons, not counting Joe Prunty’s three-game interim stint in February 2024.
Budenholzer, who led Milwaukee to the 2021 title, was fired after a 2023 playoff loss to Miami. Adrian Griffin lasted barely half a season, going 30-13 before he was fired. Doc Rivers took over and stepped down after this season with a 97-103 record.
The Bucks were one of the league’s most disappointing teams this season as injuries limited Antetokounmpo to a career-low 36 games.
“Giannis has brought Milwaukee its second championship and the first in 50 years,” Haslam said. “He’s a phenomenal player. He’s a phenomenal person. He’s arguably one of the best basketball players in the world and we will do what’s best for Giannis and what’s best for the organization. We don’t know whether Giannis will stay with us or not, but we’ll work through that with Giannis in the coming weeks.”
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