From Last Word on Pro Basketball, Lior Kozai
According to a report by Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, the Milwaukee Bucks have come to terms with Giannis Antetokounmpo on a contract extension worth $100 million over four years:
Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo has agreed on a four-year, $100M contract extension, league sources tell @TheVertical.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 19, 2016
Report: Giannis Antetokounmpo Agrees to Contract Extension
The NBA‘s rising salary cap allowed superstars such as James Harden (in July) and Russell Westbrook (in August) to renegotiate their contracts with their respective teams earlier this summer. The booming cap numbers give stars incentive to stay with their incumbent teams, where they can earn the most money.
Antetokounmpo, at just 21 years old, is going into the fourth and final year of his rookie deal. His new contract, worth about $25 million annually, will take him through the 2020-21 season, when he’ll be 25 years of age – around the time that most players enter their basketball prime years.
The young stud had a breakout last season, in which he averaged 16.9 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game. More significantly, Antetokounmpo averaged 18.8 PPG, 8.6 RPG, and 7.2 APG in his 28 games after the February All-Star break – terrific all-around numbers that would put him in a class with few others. He even racked up more than one steal and nearly two blocks per game over that time span, showing his unique versatility. Antetokounmpo essentially played point guard on offense and every position on defense towards the end of last season.
Despite the hefty price tag, this contract makes a lot of sense for the Bucks. Milwaukee knows it has a superstar in the “Greek Freak”, and it now locks him in with the team for the foreseeable future. In fact, with the cap rising and players such as Mike Conley receiving contracts worth upwards of $30 million per year, the Bucks actually got a steal here.
If Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker have success together over the next few years in Milwaukee, it will incline both of them to stay for even longer. Between those two, Khris Middleton, and the recently drafted Thon Maker, the Bucks have one of the best young cores in the league.
Antetokounmpo was selected 15th overall by the Bucks in the 2013 NBA Draft. He came straight from Greece at the age of 18. Antetokounmpo has played his entire career in Milwaukee thus far, and it appears as though he’ll be there for years to come.
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