Bucks general manager Jon Horst, head coach Doc Rivers and top assistant coach Darvin Ham all attended Greece’s opening EuroBasket victory over Italy on Thursday.
While much of the media attention was centered on the Bucks supporting his two-time MVP younger brother, Thanasis Antetokounmpo believes his hustle, energy and defense in the win helped convince Milwaukee to re-sign him, as it was first official contest in more than a year after undergoing surgery to repair a torn Achilles tendon in May 2024.
“For sure. They were here after the first game against Italy, and they were excited because I was playing defense,” Antetokounmpo said (stories courtesy of Michalis Gioulenoglou of Eurohoops.net and BasketNews.com). “I was doing my job, that’s my role.
“It’s very important for every player who comes back (from a major injury) to prove himself again. Your résumé counts, I’m not saying it doesn’t, but you have to prove yourself every day. That’s professional basketball.
“It’s not that my stress is gone because I found a team. The only thing I’m thinking about now is (Greece’s Tuesday matchup with Bosnia and Herzegovina). I put in a lot of work to be able to return.”
Antetokounmpo, 33, had spent five years with the Bucks prior to suffering the injury, which sidelined him for the entire 2024/25 season. He finished Greece’s win over Italy with six points, three rebounds, one steal and one block in just under 14 minutes of action, including hitting a key three-pointer late in the fourth quarter, per BasketNews.
The Greek national team advanced to the knockout round of EuroBasket 2025 on Sunday, as we relayed in a separate story.
I wonder if Thanasis’s contract will be moved to GSW too sometime after December 15 when the two teams complete their megadeal. This is a great rumor I heard via dozens of sources online, that I am posting about on the RUMORS site, but if you say it out loud on the RUMORS site, it makes many soft as butter losers mad as hell on here on the RUMORS site.
It’s almost like many people who post on here do not know what a RUMOR is. Or something. Calm down.
Megadeals are significantly easier to complete in the summer, rather than in-season. Keep dreaming.
Davey is right. He 100s of great online sources for NBA rumors. Funny. They are all named Ai.
Championship, Bucks just secured the title this year.
Huge signing. They missed him last year
……lol
Is this guy really that delulu to think that the bucks staff watching one EuroBasket game is the reason he got resigned? It has nothing to do with the fact that his little brother is their best player?
He cannot seriously believe that they re-signed him because of his hustle… But then, what is he going to answer? “You see, I’m lucky they want to keep my brother happy”?
Talented Thanasis twirls towels tenaciously.