“Tampering or Recruiting”: Milwaukee Bucks GM Responds to Talks of Teams Poaching Giannis Antetokounmpo

Milwaukee Bucks are one of the favorites to win the NBA Championship this year. They are almost locked to win the Eastern Conference but will have a tough Finals matchup.

The Bucks added sweet-shooting veteran Kyle Korver to work on Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s jump shot. Along with this, they created cap flexibility to re-sign Giannis in 2021. They brought back Khris Middleton on a long-term deal, but let Malcolm Brogdon walk. Defensive additions like Wesley Matthews have contributed to this team’s defensive strength this year. They even signed Thanasis Antetokounmpo for goodwill with Giannis. However, lack of championship success before his contract expires may make Giannis look at other destinations.

Milwaukee Bucks GM Jon Horst is confident that he will be able to re-sign Giannis in 2021. When he was asked how fearful he was of potential tampering in the Giannis free agency, Horst underplayed the issue. “Zero. We can only control what we can control. If it’s considered tampering or recruiting or whatever it is, in our league people talk, people are connected, people have relationships. At the end of the day, I have full confidence in my personal relationship, our league’s relationship, our coach’s relationship, his teammate’s relationship with Giannis in what we’re doing and what we’re about.”

Can The Milwaukee Bucks Keep Giannis?

Giannis is a throwback player in today’s league. He doesn’t train with opponents and sticks with his team during the season. These qualities are rare in the modern NBA and Giannis exemplifies loyalty. He hasn’t portrayed himself to be the kind of player that jumps ship when times get tough. The Bucks have created a strong core to support Giannis, and they can build on it in the coming years. If Giannis left, he would arrest the development of the Bucks and they will have to rebuild from scratch.

Giannis is averaging 29.6 points on 52% shooting from the field and roughly 30% from three. He is averaging a whopping 13.7 rebounds and is dishing out a respectable 5.8 assists per game. Giannis will be looking to repeat as MVP this year and join a small class of NBA legends who have won back-to-back MVP awards.