Giannis Thread - 2 Time MVP - The Contract discussions

[mke_design]

Jordan's DPOY/MVP season came a few before winning a championship. Something to consider if you're Giannis, the arguable GOAT had to struggle awhile before winning. His legacy won't be tarnished because of an uphill battle. That's just hype beasts lining their own pockets through day to day speculation & reporting.

Like Jalen Rose has said, when discussing Giannis decision, ... Kevin Durant wasn't truly happy after he won in GS. It's more satisfying to work past that wall than to seek a cakewalk.

Kawhi jumped ship to LAC for the chance to play with PG & in his hometown. Now like Giannis, he's not in the Conference Finals. With Toronto, he's likely playing against Miami.

Michael if he had left Chicago for Detroit, NYC, Los Angeles. He'd never be the legend or person that he is today.

Lebron ruined it for everyone. What’s new.

[MrHoneycutt]

Multiple truths all competing for supremacy when they do such a better job co-existing: Giannis needs more help and that's not on him. Giannis needs to improve his game and can't shoot, that is on him. Coach/GM/ownership need to show they're in this.

I've always been fascinated by the unwritten rules of booing. Now if GIannis would leave after next year in which we returned the same team/Bud and just 'ran it back?' I'd be a lot less heartbroken and understand completely why he would do so. Regardless...no matter what, if he leaves, I'm booing this man. Nobody should be harassed or have to deal with any personal stuff ever, but are we saying you literally cannot/should not shout the word 'b-o-o' at someone? He plays basketball hahahaha, he's not curing diseases.

Having said that, man I hope he stays. Go prove everybody wrong and work your way to that championship, GA.

[brewbucks]

His comments, the #throughthewall, the best agents and his only goal left the championship lead me to believe that he was convinced by his family and agents not to sign a contract this summer unless its a 1+1 if the roster is considerably improved. If this doesn't push the team to do something special this off season I don't know what does.

Get rid off Bledsoe, sign an elite point guard, some good shooters, and more athleticism instead of old and slow bodies.
Hard for Milwaukee but not impossible.

But his comments and #throughthewall directly contradict his family and agents wishes you're speculating about. My point is that he is continuing to be contradictory either due to a language barrier, a barrier of what hes allowed to talk about, or generally not trying to get into the business side of it. I don't know what to make of any of it.

Agreed. Even with the Milwaukee tweet a couple days ago I don’t know what he means. I read it the first time and felt great and then read it again. It could be taken either way imo.

[brewbucks]

I'm just curious what he means when he repeatedly says something along the lines of, "As long as we're on the same page and are competing for a championship". That could be as simple as going into the tax and bringing the team back, or it could be a pointed comment about upgrading the personnel across the board.

One thing I'm confident in at this point is the ownership group is going to do whatever Giannis dictates if it means he signs on the line.

I was thinking the same thing. What are all the options that would meet his qualifications? Their hands are kind of tied right now. On top of re-signing Giannis they have to bolster the roster in a way he approves. As mentioned over the last week or so, the best bet is to swing for the fences on a trade or two.

His comments regarding being on the same page, everyone working hard every day to win a championship...is there any indication some of the core guys on the team maybe don't work up to a Giannis standard? I know he says they're all his brothers but I wonder who Giannis would trade without hesitation to make the team better.

It sounds like he’s looking for a culture similar to the Miami Heat.

[fan230]

Nobody is fully sure of what Giannis will do. We need to try our best to keep him. No matter what other coaching changes Bud tries to do (assuming he is willing to be flexible), I do not think anything will make our team better unless we have a bunch of very good outside shooters. Or, a star addition plus a smaller number of good outside shooters.

We do not need shooters who are like 50% with the 3 shot but shoots it like only twice in a game. We need more points from them.

Brogdon was replaced by Wes. Led to a huge decline in offense. This hurt us tremendously overall.

Horst had to almost sign Bledsoe early since the other signings had to be done later. Middleton was not an exceptionally great player but he was very good; his talent & ability/cost ratio was the highest that the Bucks could get then. So Horst did the right thing by signing him. Brooke and George followed. So Horst did what he could but kind of ignored the importance of outside shooters especially in the context of the likelihood of the wall happening again. That I think was a mistake.

I do not know where we will get so many shooters from but among other things, the Bucks should send scouts to the region in and around Serbia and the neighboring countries which seem to generate so many good shooters who also are great at free throw percentages. Teletovic and Mirotic failed, but this region still needs to be heavily scouted; we may even find an un-drafted good shooter.

The Bucks need to go All Out and now in their efforts. It is clear that GIannis wants to stay but he is not sure how likely it is for him to lead the Bucks to a championship with the talent by his side now. That is the bottom line.

Without Giannis, the interest in Bucks basketball will plummet immediately and the brand value of the team will also drop suddenly.

[Pachinko_]

Multiple truths all competing for supremacy when they do such a better job co-existing: Giannis needs more help and that's not on him. Giannis needs to improve his game and can't shoot, that is on him.

I mean get what you're saying, I really do, but lets think about this for a minute. If Giannis (who can't shoot and has no half court game) is still 2 time MVP at the age of 25, then if he could shoot and had an improved game like you say, we're probably talking about the best player in history, right? Right.

And here we have a mostly stupid NBA team that casually makes multimillionaires out of the likes of Miles Plumlee and Greg Monroe, suddenly drafting a random dude at #15, and 6 years later we're basically complaining that he's not the best player ever? Because for some reason he should be? Kinda owes it to everybody?

I don't know, what I'm saying is that it all sounds very entitled to me. Like LA Lakers level entitled, and for no reason whatsoever.

[MrHoneycutt]

Multiple truths all competing for supremacy when they do such a better job co-existing: Giannis needs more help and that's not on him. Giannis needs to improve his game and can't shoot, that is on him.

I mean get what you're saying, I really do, but lets think about this for a minute. If Giannis (who can't shoot and has no half court game) is still 2 time MVP at the age of 25, then if he could shoot and had an improved game like you say, we're probably talking about the best player in history, right? Right.

And here we have a mostly stupid NBA team that casually makes multimillionaires out of the likes of Miles Plumlee and Greg Monroe, suddenly drafting a random dude at #15, and 6 years later we're basically complaining that he's not the best player ever? Because for some reason he should? Kinda owes it to everybody?

I don't know, what I'm saying is that it all sounds very entitled to me. Like LA Lakers entitled, and for no reason whatsoever.

Part of this I am so with you, baby. Bucks completely lucked into GIannis, there was next to no skill to be utilized. Incompetent GMs and the Kohl era, and I don't think it's fair at all to expect him to do it all alone and without other clutch performers (if not other all-stars). Bucks incompetence is the name of the millstone this fanbase has borne on its backs as long as I have been alive and a fan (mid 90s when I was a wee one).

But I think there's some misdirection about the jumper you are using here. I don't even blame him for having a wack shot, Kidd/Oppenheimer/et. al destroyed his confidence and eroded whatever ability he had at such a critical developmental point. But couldn't we acknowledge the other end of the proverbial spectrum we are on, that no matter how it happened the challenge has been laid bare? You can go through the wall metaphorically, but not literally as the Raptors and Heat showed. Nobody is asking him to become steph curry, but even a minor threat would open things up so much more (along with, god willing, some new members of the supporting cast). I don't think it's overly entitled to ask the 2-time MVP to maybe not airball his free throws and hit a few from 10 feet out when it counts.

We're all rejoicing that he has become what he has become, I was marveling at the post the other day remembering how much we certainly would have lost our collective minds if Bogut made one all-star team. Giannis is one of the best stories of all time, but the time is also now to rise to that level of greatness he so aspires to. As Barkley so astutely pointed out, MJ didn't win until he was 28, would be such a terrible shame if Giannis didn't get the chance to grow into it too. He certainly doesn't owe it to me or to any of us, here or anywhere else, but he also needs to look hard in the mirror about his performance in the playoffs these past 2 years.

[Pachinko_]

Part of this I am so with you, baby. Bucks completely lucked into GIannis, there was next to no skill to be utilized. Incompetent GMs and the Kohl era, and I don't think it's fair at all to expect him to do it all alone and without other clutch performers (if not other all-stars). Bucks incompetence is the name of the millstone this fanbase has borne on its backs as long as I have been alive and a fan (mid 90s when I was a wee one).

But I think there's some misdirection about the jumper you are using here. I don't even blame him for having a wack shot, Kidd/Oppenheimer/et. al destroyed his confidence and eroded whatever ability he had at such a critical developmental point. But couldn't we acknowledge the other end of the proverbial spectrum we are on, that no matter how it happened the challenge has been laid bare? You can go through the wall metaphorically, but not literally as the Raptors and Heat showed. Nobody is asking him to become steph curry, but even a minor threat would open things up so much more (along with, god willing, some new members of the supporting cast). I don't think it's overly entitled to ask the 2-time MVP to maybe not airball his free throws and hit a few from 10 feet out when it counts.

We're all rejoicing that he has become what he has become, I was marveling at the post the other day remembering how much we certainly would have lost our collective minds if Bogut made one all-star team. Giannis is one of the best stories of all time, but the time is also now to rise to that level of greatness he so aspires to. As Barkley so astutely pointed out, MJ didn't win until he was 28, would be such a terrible shame if Giannis didn't get the chance to grow into it too. He certainly doesn't owe it to me or to any of us, here or anywhere else, but he also needs to look hard in the mirror about his performance in the playoffs these past 2 years.

All fair points.
All right, look at himself in the mirror. It's done, I'm telling you he's done that. Then what?
Go back and work harder on his game and his shooting. That is done as well. There is not more hard working person on the Bucks, maybe in the League. Done. Now what?

[MrHoneycutt]

Part of this I am so with you, baby. Bucks completely lucked into GIannis, there was next to no skill to be utilized. Incompetent GMs and the Kohl era, and I don't think it's fair at all to expect him to do it all alone and without other clutch performers (if not other all-stars). Bucks incompetence is the name of the millstone this fanbase has borne on its backs as long as I have been alive and a fan (mid 90s when I was a wee one).

But I think there's some misdirection about the jumper you are using here. I don't even blame him for having a wack shot, Kidd/Oppenheimer/et. al destroyed his confidence and eroded whatever ability he had at such a critical developmental point. But couldn't we acknowledge the other end of the proverbial spectrum we are on, that no matter how it happened the challenge has been laid bare? You can go through the wall metaphorically, but not literally as the Raptors and Heat showed. Nobody is asking him to become steph curry, but even a minor threat would open things up so much more (along with, god willing, some new members of the supporting cast). I don't think it's overly entitled to ask the 2-time MVP to maybe not airball his free throws and hit a few from 10 feet out when it counts.

We're all rejoicing that he has become what he has become, I was marveling at the post the other day remembering how much we certainly would have lost our collective minds if Bogut made one all-star team. Giannis is one of the best stories of all time, but the time is also now to rise to that level of greatness he so aspires to. As Barkley so astutely pointed out, MJ didn't win until he was 28, would be such a terrible shame if Giannis didn't get the chance to grow into it too. He certainly doesn't owe it to me or to any of us, here or anywhere else, but he also needs to look hard in the mirror about his performance in the playoffs these past 2 years.

All fair points.
All right, look at himself in the mirror. It's done, I'm telling you he's done that. Then what?
Go back and work harder on his game and his shooting. That is done as well. There is not more hard working person on the Bucks, maybe in the League. Done. Now what?

I wish I knew, man. I don't think you're wrong here at all, and I'm just a-hoping for the best. But I also wonder...has he done everything? I think it's time to answer the siren call of working with a new shooting coach outside the team, or Dirk, or whoever. I wouldn't dare purport to know what Giannis has done 24/7 in his off season time, but I think we'd have heard if he sought new expert council around the matter.

[MrHoneycutt]

Also I'm wondering if that's a touch of a misnomer as well. Hardest working dude on the team? Absolutely, without a single doubt. Hardest working in the NBA. Exceedingly likely. But could he work harder, or harder and smarter? I think so. He can be insanely driven but also that doesn't leave out that his potential and growth is untapped or unreached as of yet, and not honed in on in the best way.

[th87]

There was a time when we would’ve all absolutely lost our **** if Andrew Bogut made ONE all star team.

We were losing it when he got 20 points against the Bobcats

[th87]

I'm just curious what he means when he repeatedly says something along the lines of, "As long as we're on the same page and are competing for a championship". That could be as simple as going into the tax and bringing the team back, or it could be a pointed comment about upgrading the personnel across the board.

One thing I'm confident in at this point is the ownership group is going to do whatever Giannis dictates if it means he signs on the line.

I was thinking the same thing. What are all the options that would meet his qualifications? Their hands are kind of tied right now. On top of re-signing Giannis they have to bolster the roster in a way he approves. As mentioned over the last week or so, the best bet is to swing for the fences on a trade or two.

His comments regarding being on the same page, everyone working hard every day to win a championship...is there any indication some of the core guys on the team maybe don't work up to a Giannis standard? I know he says they're all his brothers but I wonder who Giannis would trade without hesitation to make the team better.

It sounds like he’s looking for a culture similar to the Miami Heat.

Rodgers needs to sit him down and read him The Tragedy of Brett Favre.

[paulpressey25]

He’s a 25 year old kid. Notice how he’s now reading that newspaper in a Gulfstream not Southwest Airlines.

Add in the girlfriend, the kid, the fact his father is no longer there.

This thing could go anywhere from Tim Duncan (in Milwaukee forever) to David St.Hubbins from Spinal Tap (Jeanine reads tarot cards telling him his talents are being wasted here)

[Fotis St]

His Legacy is on the line and he knows it.
He either get to the Finals with the Bucks or other team or he will be downgraded to the Westbrook level of player. We know he is so so so much better than him, but the media people perception will be like he is a "regular season stat padding player" . I would not say he is a 25 year old "kid" any more. He is not a kid, he is a "father" and he has lost his father, so I think he is on the verge to make decisions based not only by his heart and feelings but after a deep dive in logic.

[PedroGrande]

His Legacy is on the line and he knows it.
He either get to the Finals with the Bucks or other team or he will be downgraded to the Westbrook level of player. We know he is so so so much better than him, but the media people perception will be like he is a "regular season stat padding player" . I would not say he is a 25 year old "kid" any more. He is not a kid, he is a "father" and he has lost his father, so I think he is on the verge to make decisions based not only by his heart and feelings but after a deep dive in logic.

One of the things that the MJ Doc taught everybody was that even the Goat had to deal with a lot of doubt and that things weren'tas granted early as we could think.

MJ started o be just a "Stat Padder" acording to some press, then he coudlnt win in the Playoffs, then he coudlnt win a Back to back Championship and so on and so on. But he persisted, he actually improved on those aspects, the front office also gave him better assets for him to get a championship, sometimes even contrary to what HE thought he needed.

It couldnt come at a better time for the bucks aspirations to sign Giannis the Supermax. It was opposite to what was being done and said what a player should do.

I also believe that even bud will improve next year and the whole team will start to take a more lebron like approach to the Regular season. And bud will understand that playoffs arent that much system oriented but a lot more matchup oriented. And the coaching staff should prepare the season that way.

[jakecronus8]

Lebron crying and claiming narrative is so hilarious considering narrative is literally the one and only reason one would vote for him over Giannis this year. Then to go on and claim he doesn’t care moments after complaining and whining and bringing up his own case from 8 years ago. It’s all so on brand for him. Saw someone had the theory that he’s most bitter because Giannis got an MJ accomplishment that he never will and it all makes sense. Again, this guy just drips and oozes insincerity.

[Matches Malone]

Do you guys ever think Giannis could or would want to play center full time? I just keep imagining him out there making plays like Jokic from the 5...

Read on Twitter

[LuessiT]

Do you guys ever think Giannis could or would want to play center full time? I just keep imagining him out there making plays like Jokic from the 5...

Read on Twitter

Could? Sure. Want? Not sure.

[Big Dog Yank]

LeBron, the undisputed GOAT BITCH.

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29918327/los-angeles-lakers-lebron-james-says-mvp-voting-totals-pissed-off

I love that the Bucks upstaged him and stole his chance to be the league's social justice warrior supreme when the team wouldn't take the floor. Now, he's pissed because Giannis totally outplayed him in the regular season. Read his quotes, he barely calls Giannis by name.

There are certainly worse guys in the league than LeBron, but none less likeable in my book.

[jakecronus8]

LeBron, the undisputed GOAT BITCH.

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29918327/los-angeles-lakers-lebron-james-says-mvp-voting-totals-pissed-off

I love that the Bucks upstaged him and stole his chance to be the league's social justice warrior supreme when the team wouldn't take the floor. Now, he's pissed because Giannis totally outplayed him in the regular season. Read his quotes, he barely calls Giannis by name.

There are certainly worse guys in the league than LeBron, but none less likeable in my book.

Yep. Giannis is his boogey man.