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The Milwaukee Bucks have had a busy offseason, recently waiving Damian Lillard and stretching out the remainder of his contract so that they could sign free agent center Myles Turner to a deal. The move appeared to be a last-ditch effort by the Bucks to reiterate their commitment to Giannis Antetokounmpo, although the star reportedly wasn't onboard with them waiving Lillard, per NBA insider Chris B. Haynes.
Antetokounmpo hasn't been known to be that adamant of an influence on his front office as compared to other superstars around the league over the years, but recently, former Bucks center John Henson recalled a time when the Greek Freak essentially vetoed a trade regarding two All-Star players.
“There was a trade… Khris Middleton for Jimmy Butler swap – Giannis was like ‘nah we're not doing that' – that was only time I've ever seen him stand up & say something,” said Henson, per SiriusXM NBA Radio on X, formerly Twitter.
It's unclear exactly when this proposed trade would have occurred, but the story certainly fits in with Antetokounmpo's theme of remaining loyal to his Bucks teammates over the years.
Of course, the Bucks ultimately ended up trading Middleton this past season to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Kyle Kuzma in a move that did not exactly pay dividends for either franchise.
Strange times for the Bucks
While signing Myles Turner certainly made the Bucks more of a threat than they otherwise would have been after losing center Brook Lopez in free agency, Milwaukee still figures to be several tiers below teams like the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference hierarchy at the present juncture.
This season, all eyes will be on Milwaukee and whether or not Antetokounmpo will eventually ask for a trade from the franchise that drafted him in 2013 and where he grew to become one of the greatest players in NBA history.
While there is still some work to be done this offseason, at this point, it doesn't seem that the Bucks have many avenues to make themselves that much better before the 2025-26 campaign gets underway.
