Giannis Antetkounmpo Q&A as Bucks' frustrating season ends: 'We were very bad'

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One question about his future stands out among the rest: Does Antetokounmpo feel he has played his last game as a member of the Bucks? “That’s a very good question,” Antetokounmpo said in response to a question from The Athletic on Sunday night. “I don’t know. It’s not up to me anymore. It’s not up to me. We’ll see.” While that feels difficult to believe for the franchise cornerstone after spending his first 13 seasons in Milwaukee, the Bucks, led by both controlling owner Wes Edens and general manager Jon Horst, have made it clear that the organization will consider the thought of moving Antetokounmpo to a different team this offseason. Their decision on the path they choose for the franchise moving forward will lead conversations around the NBA over the next three months. That conversation may go even further if the Bucks ultimately hold onto Antetokounmpo and offer him a four-year supermax extension worth $275 million on Oct. 1. Speaking for the first time since publicly declaring he was healthy enough to play on April 3, Antetokounmpo held a session with reporters following Sunday’s game that lasted roughly 10 minutes. Below is a transcribed version of that conversation, edited for clarity and brevity: You are going to be the topic of every conversation heading this offseason. How do you approach that? Antetokounmpo: Phone on do not disturb. Working hard every single day to improve my game, be in the best physical shape that I can be and just stay away from it — all of it. I feel like this season, not just because of the way it went, it was draining for me, for sure, and how everybody approached my situation and the Bucks situation. But again, if it was draining for me, it was definitely draining for the team and for the organization. I feel like sometimes, people just don’t listen. They listen to the “sources,” and the main source is me. It is what it is. So again, do not disturb (on my) phone, go about my day, improve and come back better. With injuries plaguing you for much of this season, you played in just 36 games, the fewest of any of your NBA seasons. How have you handled not being as available as you’d like to be? Antetokounmpo: It’s part of it. It’s basketball. Obviously, for the first time in my career, not being available for 40 games … it never happened to me. It was definitely tough. But I understand it’s basketball, man. You’re going to have a down year. You’re going to have an up year. It is how you respond to it. You can fall down, crumble, whine about it and cry about it, but that’s not who I am. I’m never gonna do that. The only other choice I have is to put my head down, get better, work out, dive deep into my craft and what I want to achieve this summer. And this, for the first time in my career, to have a summer from January until October, I’ve never had that in my life. So, I’m going to definitely take advantage of this summer, try to get away from everything and try to do things, try things that I haven’t tried before. So, we’ll see. How much control do you feel like you have? Antetokounmpo: At this point … zero. I didn’t have control. I was being cleared to play; I don’t understand. From my understanding, coming back to play — which I don´t think I ever had any return-to-play protocol — but my understanding was I had to play three-on-three to be able to be available to play. I did that multiple times. I have never in my life denied participation (in) practice, which whoever says that, I don’t know who said that, who came up with that. That’s disrespectful towards what I’ve done for this team and the way I carry myself my whole career, pretty much. You’ve been around me. You know. But I did what I was supposed to do. I wasn’t able to come on the court now. Who has that say? It probably comes from above. It probably comes from maybe the front office or the owners. So I thought I had control, kind of like ‘If I’m healthy, I’m going to play,’ but this shows me that we, not just me, just players in general, don’t have no control. We’ve gotta do what we’ve been told. So, to answer your question, no, I didn’t feel like I had control at all. For you, is all of this just about communication with general manager Jon Horst and owners Wes Edens and Jimmy Haslam to figure out what all of you want together moving forward? Antetokounmpo: “I’m very big on communication. I’m very big on communication. I think this is why I’m able to have a happy marriage, you know? I’ve been 10 years with my wife. Ten years with my wife, married one and a half and I think we have an incredible family, we love one another and we support one another and the reason that is, is because we communicate with one another. This is why we (are) so tight. We always say the truth and we never argue. Even when we argue we try to figure out a way for us to move on forward and try to find a solution that for that specific moment. You don’t let things linger. I’m very big on communication. I’ve always been open. But, I don’t know if that; it gotta go both ways. It has to go both ways. It cannot go one way.” If you’re still with the Bucks on Oct. 1, are you willing to sign another supermax extension? “Oh, that’s too far. That’s too far away. It’s something I gotta sit down, see, talk with my family, see what’s best for me and what’s best for my family, for my career. If that’s the best scenario, I will definitely want to do that. But before we even talk about an extension somebody gotta offer me that. I haven’t been offered an extension, so that’s too far. So you gotta take it a step at a time.” Antetokounmpo then asked a reporter what he would do if he was in the star’s position in October. The reporter acknowledged he could use the hundreds of millions of dollars that would be in that offer. Antetokounmpo: “I don’t know what the number is, but I think I’m pretty much OK. If I don’t take it, it would probably affect my great, great grandkids. It won’t affect me. But, what would you do basketball-wise? Money doesn’t mean nothing to me. Zero. Absolutely zero. What means something to me is winning. What would you do? Take money out of it.” That’s an interesting question. Antetokounmpo: “That’s why I’m asking. What would you do?” Wouldn’t the implication be that if you’re at Bucks media day on Oct. 1, the team has decided they’re going to offer you the extension and the team has been retooled in a way to compete with you yet again? Antetokounmpo: “Mmhmm. Mmhmm. What would I do then? Hypothetically? I know. First of all, I don’t wear the pants in my relationship. I gotta ask my wife. If my wife says yes, yes. If she says no, no. It’s up to her. So you guys gotta ask her. Find her on social media. Follow her podcast. I don’t know if she has one. Ask her. Whatever she says, I do.” But you wouldn’t be opposed to it? Antetokounmpo: “To sign? A contract? No. But, we’ll see when we get there. Until we get to October, it’s eight months, seven months. It’s a long time. But somebody has to offer you that for you to sign. I haven’t been offered an extension. So if that is on the table, then I will try to make the best decision for me and family. But if it’s not on the table, then I have to focus on how can I prove my worth and get on the floor and do what I do.” You have always told the Bucks that you want to contend for championships. How far away do you feel the team is away from that? Antetokounmpo: “We were very bad. We are the furthest away that we’ve been in the last couple of years. How many wins did we have? Thirty-two? This is (the) second-lowest wins I’ve ever won, right? The first was 15 (in 2013-14), the second is 32 (this season), and 33 (in 2015-16). So yeah, we’re the furthest away that we’ve been, I think. So, we’ll see. This is what we have in front of us. I didn’t think we were going to be in this position last year, so I don’t know what position we’re going to be next year. If everything goes well, hopefully if the Bucks want me here, why not? But if they don’t, OK.” Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Eric Nehm is a senior writer for The Athletic covering the Milwaukee Bucks. Previously, he covered the Bucks at ESPN Milwaukee and wrote the book "100 Things Bucks Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die." Nehm was named NSMA's 2022 Wisconsin Sports Writer of the Year. Follow Eric on Twitter @eric_nehm