Giannis Antetokounmpo reportedly agrees to new Bucks contract

Giannis Antetokounmpo reportedly agrees to three-year, $186-million extension with Bucks

Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo dribbles the ball.

By NOAH TRISTER

Associated Press

Oct. 23, 2023 4:36 PM PT

Giannis Antetokounmpo has indicated on social media that he has agreed to a contract extension with the Milwaukee Bucks.

Antetokounmpo issued a social media post on Monday that said, “MILWAUKEEEEEEEEE!! Let’s get it!!!! #BucksInSix #Extended.” The post came as ESPN reported that the two-time MVP had agreed on a three-year extension worth $186 million, with a player option for the 2027-28 season.

Antetokounmpo’s announcement came as Minnesota’s Jaden McDaniels, Washington’s Deni Avdija and Orlando’s Cole Anthony led the first wave of fourth-year players to reach agreements on contract extensions ahead of the NBA’s deadline.

Antetokounmpo had said this summer that he didn’t plan to sign an extension this year because it would make more financial sense for him to wait until the summer. The two-time MVP also had indicated that he wanted to wait to see how committed the Bucks were toward winning another title before he decided on whether to sign an extension on his contract, which at the time ran through 2024-25 with a player option for 2025-26.

Since then, the Bucks made a blockbuster trade to acquire seven-time all-NBA guard Damian Lillard from the Portland Trail Blazers. Even after that trade, Antetokounmpo had indicated he didn’t expect to sign an extension this year.

“I said that it did not make sense to sign the contract right now because money’s not important — a lot of money is important. So I’m going to sign it next year,” Antetokounmpo said with a laugh during the Bucks’ Media Day event on Oct. 2. “But, no, at the end of the day, again, it doesn’t make sense. It does not make sense for me to sign it right now. I’ve got to always look at what’s best for me and my family, for my situation.

“But at the end of the day, I want to be a Milwaukee Buck for the rest of my career, as long as we are winning. It’s as simple as that.”

The extension starts with the 2025-26 season, meaning Antetokounmpo is under contract for at least four more years — and a fifth if he’s so inclined. He will earn about $94.4 million over the next two seasons, then about $120 million more for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 seasons.

The last year is at his option, meaning he could make roughly $66 million more in 2027-28.

And if Antetokounmpo had waited until next summer to agree to an extension, he possibly may have earned even more money. A max-extension scenario had he waited until 2024 could have been a four-year agreement at a figure exceeding $250 million.

As far as the extensions involving fourth-year players, agent Bill Duffy confirmed that McDaniels and the Timberwolves agreed on a five-year, $136 million extension. The 28th overall pick in 2020, who came to Minnesota in the same draft as star Anthony Edwards, had a breakout third season with an average of 12.1 points per game on 51.7% shooting.

With three maximum contract players on the roster in Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert, the Timberwolves have committed themselves to the luxury tax range with their salary cap. But the 6-foot-9 McDaniels is the team’s best defender and one of the league’s best shutdown wings, and the Timberwolves believe he has untapped offensive potential to pair with his defensive ability.

“I feel like, shoot, I can go out and score 25 points every night if I wanted to,” McDaniels said at the beginning of training camp.

The Timberwolves open their season at Toronto on Wednesday. McDaniels currently has a calf injury, putting his status for the game in doubt.