“I’m back, I’m back,” announced Giannis Antetokounmpo’s elder brother, Thanasis, during a live taping of his show back in May. Since 2019, both brothers have been teammates on the Milwaukee Bucks roster. In a way, they are like the NBA’s version of Thomas Shelby and Arthur Shelby, with the younger brother leading the organization while the older one continuously stood as his support. This partnership, unfortunately, was put to a halt after Thanasis sustained a torn Achilles’ tendon back in May 2024. After missing the entire 2024-25 season, the elder Antetokounmpo is now healthy enough to return. However, the question now is whether ‘The Greek Freak’ will even be present with the Bucks by the time the next season begins.
It is no secret that, over the last few months, Giannis Antetokounmpo has been the subject of trade speculation. Renowned NBA analyst Bill Simmons and former ESPN host Ryen Russillo added on to this during a recent episode of the former’s podcast. Simmons touched base on the Houston Rockets, who recently acquired Kevin Durant by trading off Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick in the 2025 draft, and five second-round picks. Even after this major deal, the host believes the Rockets have the “flexibility for one more trade if they want to do it.”
Simmons did not choose to predict the exact time of this trade, since he gave both the summer and the December-February timeline as options. If it is the latter, however, Simmons believes the Rockets could make a move for Giannis Antetokounmpo. After all, if things don’t improve for the Milwaukee Bucks, the Rockets can take advantage of an opening.
“Giannis is not getting traded this summer, but if it’s January, and they’re 15, the Bucks are 15 and 25, and he’s like, ‘You know what? This sucks. Let’s… It’s time’ said the 55-year-old analyst. “They still have their chance.”
However, being one of the most popular players in the modern NBA, other teams would also be after the ‘Greek Freak.’ Therefore, Simmons also added that “If the Celtics change their mind, and they’re like, ‘God damn, we didn’t realize we’d be this bad, and we’re going to pay how much money in luxury tax? Like, yeah, maybe we will trade Jaylen Brown.’ They still have the flexibility in some of the assets to make a second move, which I thought this was going to be their move, and this might be move number one. So I thought, from that standpoint, great”.
All in all, the host highlighted that the race to take Giannis Antetokounmpo away from the Milwaukee Bucks will not stop anytime soon. No matter where Giannis would be traded, it would still put a reunion with his brother at risk.
Thanasis Antetokounmpo (left) and his younger brother, Giannis, share a happy moment after winning the 2021 NBA championship
Credits: NBA.Com
A reunion that Thanasis is most looking forward to. The 32-year-old player even highlighted this yesterday through a social media post for his 1.2 million followers. The same featured two pictures of a practice session featuring both Thanasis and Giannis. Thanasis also added a caption to the post that read “Loading… .” Yeah, well, remember when you used to switch on your old desktop computers, it read “Loading…,” but then suddenly switched to “System Error. Please Restart.” Well, a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade would be like that, only there won’t be a restart button. That is, unless Thanasis also joined the team that Giannis Antetokounmpo would be traded to.
Fortunately, the Milwaukee Bucks are reportedly doing their part to ensure their star player does not go anywhere. There already is a plan that, hopefully, would convince ‘The Greek Freak’ to stay if he is having doubts. While it would not break the reunion, the proposed plan would still delay it. By a year.
Chris Mannix reveals the Bucks’ plan to make Giannis Antetokounmpo take a ‘gap year’: “You’ve got some flexibility”
A little before mid-June, NBA journalist Kevin O’Connor and senior writer Chris Mannix touched base on the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors. Mannix, who seemingly has insider access to the NBA teams, revealed that “Every time I check in with someone in the (Bucks) organization, I keep getting told, ‘Yes, they’re going to convene. They’re going to have a kind of a come-to-Jesus moment, um, with Giannis, with the front office.’”
Mannix’s revelation that the Bucks front office was going to have a private meeting with Giannis to get him to stay long-term would highlight just how unwilling the team is to cut ties with him. Then again, with the Bucks having gotten eliminated in the first round of the playoffs 3 years in a row, Giannis might be looking for a change. Therefore, even with a closed-door meeting, the only way to convince Giannis to stay would be to improve the team to a championship-contending level. For that, however, Giannis will have to take a break.
“Most people I’ve talked to believe the sales pitch will be, you know, hey, a gap year next year,” said Mannix. “You know, where you just claw your way maybe to 500, and then, when you get to the summer of 2026, you’ve got some flexibility in terms of your payroll, you’ve got some flexibility in terms of draft picks you can deal, that’s when they can make their move again.”
Apr 10, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) warms up before game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
Not only Thanasis Antetokounmpo, but every Bucks player would be affected when asked to play without ‘The Greek Freak’ for a year. In the end, however, the sacrifice is for the team’s long-term betterment. Furthermore, a gap year would do more than just allow the Bucks to think about who to trade and acquire. It would also give them a chance to figure out how to utilize Giannis best.
No matter what, it seems that Thanasis and Giannis might not reunite for the 2024-25 season. However, we’d rather it be a single-season delay than not being on the same NBA team ever again.
The post Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Potential Family Reunion at Risk as Surprise Trade Speculation Emerges appeared first on EssentiallySports.
