The saga in Milwaukee continues as Giannis Antetokounmpo calls out the Bucks for their late-season tanking tactics.
In a revealing chat with Bucks beat writer Eric Nehm of The Athletic, the two-time MVP flamed the franchise for trying to hold him out of games while perfectly healthy. He called the attempts to force him out a “slap in the face” and confirmed that he is ready and able to play right now.
“You know who you are dealing with,” Antetokounmpo said. “So for somebody to come and tell me not to play or not to compete, it’s like a slap in my face. So, I don’t know where the relationship goes from there. I’m available to play, but I’m not in the game. I’m available to play today. Right now. I’m available. Do I look like I’m not available? I don’t see myself in the first 12. I don’t see myself in the starting lineup. I don’t know what game is being played right here, I just don’t wanna be a part of it.”
Giannis is officially listed as out due to a left knee hyperextension and bone bruise suffered on March 15. He hasn’t played since, limiting him to just 36 games this season with averages of 27.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game on 62.4% shooting and 33.3% shooting from three.
Giannis has had some talks with Doc Rivers and GM Jon Horst, but he denies ever agreeing to sit himself down for the season. In fact, he suggested something sinister was at play as he welcomed a full investigation by the NBA office, which is reportedly coming after some initial conversations.
“I had an initial conversation with who I should be talking to, which is coach Doc (Rivers) — let’s just keep it at coach Doc and (general manager) Jon (Horst) — and the initial conversation is that I want to play. And after that, I’ve never had a conversation again,” Antetokounmpo said. “Nobody has ever approached me (about) not playing or whatever the plan is. I’ve never seen a case of a player saying, my caliber of player, that’s like — I’m saying it publicly — I want to f–-ing play. You know what I’m saying? I don’t think I’ve seen this. So, if there needs to be an investigation, great. There should be. I don’t know. There should be. Until we figure something out.”
It’s unknown if the NBA will take action here, but they might step in and punish the Bucks if they find that Giannis’ story checks out. Per the league’s player participation policy, teams cannot deny a player’s availability if they are healthy and able to perform. While the Bucks will obviously try to deny that Giannis is healthy, how sure can they be when Giannis himself is saying that he’s perfectly fine?
In the end, it’s no mystery what’s going on here. With both sides headed for a divorce, the team is trying to preserve Giannis ‘ trade value, while Giannis is simply trying to preserve his reputation. Sitting out the season when you don’t need to is not a good look, and the Greek Freak wants everyone to know that things would be different if he had more control.
