23 September 2023 , 18:23
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NBA star Khris Middleton has commented on Giannis Antetokounmpo's desire to leave the Milwaukee Bucks if he thinks they can’t compete for another championship.
The 29-year-old is desperate to lift the Larry O’Brien trophy once again and he has had no problem with making it known he will go where there is a realistic chance of winning the title again. It is the last thing Bucks fans wanted to hear from their star player just a month before the new NBA season is due to commence.
Now arguably his most important teammate - Middleton - has shared his thoughts on Antetokounmpo’s words, and he does not seem bothered by them. “I think it’s kind of business as usual either way,” Middleton told ESPN. “It doesn’t affect me personally. I don’t think it affects us as a team.
“I think this is something he said almost every year he’s come up in contract extension talks. We always want him back for sure. Let’s be for sure and let everyone know that. We want this guy to come back because he’s one of the best players in the world. He’s one of the best players in franchise history.
“So when he says things like that, I think he just wants to challenge the team, the organisation, to keep putting us in position to win championships. But I think it’s just something that he just wants to keep putting pressure on everybody. And that’s himself also.”
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Middleton and Antetokounmpo have been Bucks teammates since they both entered the league in 2013.
They went on to win their first championship in 2021 by defeating the Phoenix Suns, which marked the franchise’s first NBA title since 1971. Middleton has agreed to extend his stay with the Eastern Conference franchise after signing a three-year, $93 million extension over the summer.
With two years remaining on his contract before he can be an unrestricted free agent, Antetokounmpo is eligible to sign a three-year extension worth roughly $169 million. The Bucks have kept the rest of their core but they will be guided by first-time head coach Adrian Griffin, who has replaced Mike Budenholzer.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Middleton have been Milwaukee Bucks teammates since their NBA debuts in 2013 (John Fisher/Getty Images)Middleton admitted that, after losing to the Miami Heat in the first round of the Playoffs last season, he believed there would be a big change at the franchise. However, the three-time All-Star was unsure what that change would be.
"I think you could always feel some change can happen when you lose in the first round when you're expected to contend for a championship," Middleton said. "And whether that's coaching, whether that's players moving, I didn't have a feel of what was going to happen.
"I was a free agent also, [and a player] that was coming off two injuries. I didn't know if I was going to be the one that, you know, was going to move on, or a coach or another player. I think this time it just happened to be Bud, which kind of caught us by surprise a little bit. But I think we kind of knew something was going to happen. Something was going to have to change for us to get to that next level as a team, as an organization."