Insider Reveals The One Main Reason That Giannis Antetokounmpo Wants Out of Milwaukee

December 04, 2025

Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks superstar

For now, the Giannis Antetokounmpo Sweepstakes are on hold, as he will need some time to recover from what the Milwaukee Bucks are calling a calf strain that will keep him out for two-to-four weeks. But we did hear on Wednesday that Giannis did, in fact, ask for a trade out of Milwaukee before the season began (no matter what Doc Rivers says), and now he was ready to sit down with the team again to discuss his future. 

Now, plugged-in NBA Insider Brian Windhorst has revealed that there was one defining incident that finally tipped the Greek Freak into asking out of Milwaukee this past summer.

According to Windhorst, Giannis was extremely frustrated with the Bucks for waiving his co-star, Damian Lillard, after the latter suffered an Achilles tear in the playoffs. 

“I can’t emphasize this enough. Giannis saw that move and then was interested in being a Knick. He couldn’t have been more clear about where he felt about the Bucks roster.

“'I want to be a Knick. Make me a Knick'" was what Giannis told the Bucks.

The Knicks, however, did not come up with an offer that was suitable for the Bucks, so that idea was shelved, and Antetokounmpo decided to commit to the Bucks for the 2025-26 season—at least to start with. 

Now, who knows where things stand, as the Bucks continue to flounder, at 10-13 on the season (despite a surprising win over the top-seed Detroit Pistons last night), and Giannis sits out until around Christmas, or later. 

But insider Shams Charania says the Knicks are certainly not the only team in the running now to try to land Giannis, once he's back.

For now, everything is on hold. 

Photo: © Michael McLoone-Imagn Images 

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