Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo looks set to sign new three-year extension, after revealing a contract agreement with franchise on his social media
Tuesday 24 October 2023 14:05, UK
Giannis Antetokounmpo announced on social media that he has agreed a new three-year contract with the Milwaukee Bucks, worth a reported $186m, with an option for a further year.
The two-time NBA MVP issued a social media post on Monday revealing he had agreed a contract extension.
The Bucks have not made an official announcement, but they reposted Antetokounmpo's post on X. The Bucks' repost , which was later deleted, included the message, "The best possible cure for the Mondays".
The extension starts with the 2025-26 season, meaning Antetokounmpo is under contract for at least four more years - and a fifth if he's so inclined. He will earn about $94.4m over the next two seasons, then about $120m more for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 seasons.
Antetokounmpo's announcement came as Minnesota Timberwolves' Jaden McDaniels, Washington Wizards' Deni Avdija and Orlando Magic's Cole Anthony led the first wave of fourth-year players to reach agreements on contract extensions ahead of the NBA's deadline.
Antetokounmpo said last summer that he did not plan to sign an extension this year because it would make more financial sense for him to wait. He also indicated that he wanted to wait to see how committed the Bucks were toward winning another title before he decided on whether to extend his stay.
Since then, the Bucks made a blockbuster trade to acquire seven-time all-NBA guard Damian Lillard from the Portland Trail Blazers. But, even after that trade, Antetokounmpo had indicated he did not expect to sign an extension this year.
Ahead of the new NBA season, Antetokounmpo said on the Bucks' media day on October 2: "It did not make sense to sign the contract right now because money's not important - a lot of money is important. So I'm going to sign it next year.
"I've got to always look at what's best for me and my family, for my situation.
"But at the end of the day, I want to be a Milwaukee Buck for the rest of my career, as long as we are winning. It's as simple as that."
If Antetokounmpo had waited until next summer to agree to an extension, he possibly could have have earned even more money. A max-extension scenario, had he waited until 2024, could have been a four-year agreement at a figure exceeding $250m.
