MVP, Defensive Player of the Year and champion are just a few of the hats Giannis Antetokounmpo has worn throughout his career with the Milwaukee Bucks. Could he add owner to the list?
Not an owner of the Bucks, though one should never say never, but instead an overseas team. Giannis watched Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens’ qualification to the EuroLeague final game recently and spoke to reporters, eventually leading to a conversation that involved his possible venture into ownership in the future and which teams he currently has an eye on.
Specifically, he expressed a desire to potentially own Panathinaikos or Olympiacos if their owners were willing to sell. Interestingly, Antetokounmpo noted that he would likely not play for either of those teams due to them not wanting him when he was on the rise as a player, but he didn’t mince words when the prospect of ownership was brought up. Transcribed by BasketNews:
Turning to his agent, George Panou who was next to him, Antetokounmpo suggested he could buy a Greek team.
“If they’re selling it to us,” he clarified.
“If Mr. Giannakopoulos sells it to us, which I don’t see happening, or Mr. Angelopoulos, I will buy a team,” he explained.
Antetokounmpo noted that it is unlikely he’d get the owners to sell to him at this point, but he’s putting it out there that he’d like to earn that title at some point. Depending on how things shake out throughout the remainder of his career, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Greek Freak even tried getting his name involved with the Bucks ownership group, but it’s too early to think about that quite yet.
For now, the Greek Freak’s focus is on the Milwaukee Bucks. The soon-to-be 30-year-old has to have a chip on his shoulder after missing considerable time in the playoffs the past two seasons, which was a major factor in Milwaukee’s shortcomings. Making a promise to Bucks fans that they will get back to the NBA’s mountaintop at some point, Antetokounmpo is clearly focused.
Ownership talks will have to wait, as Giannis has higher aspirations right now in the form of wanting to win as many championships with the Bucks as possible. Let’s hope that the calf injury that limited him in the latter portion of the NBA season is healing up nicely.
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