Did The Bucks Team Barber Just Confirm That Giannis Is Leaving Milwaukee?
Man do I love NBA Reddit. The internet is always watching at all times. This is especially true when it comes to NBA Twitter. There is not a thing that makes its way to social media that NBA Twitter won't be all over. So, and as soon as a stoolie sent me this screenshot I had to do a little investigating.
I went to this profile and for the life of me, I cannot find this IG post. Does that mean it's deleted because he spilled the beans? Does that mean it never existed and is just a photoshop from someone who just wanted to troll Bucks fans on Reddit? Is it possible that maybe the barber is moving or something? It's all on the table if you ask me.
I will say this, it's now December 14th. The deadline for Giannis to sign his supermax extension is December 21st. If he doesn't, he's officially an unrestricted free agent for the summer of 2021. We're one week away and as of the writing of this blog there's been no update about him signing. If Giannis was going to stay and commit, what is he waiting for? The Bucks roster is set. Their move to show Giannis they were committed to winning ended up being adding Jrue Holiday, DJ Agustin, and Bobby Portis. If we assume this post is real, you combine that with the reality of the fact that Giannis has had this supermax offer for weeks and still hasn't signed, that isn't the best sign for Milwaukee.
Now let's be fair for Bucks fans. Even as a UFA this summer, the Bucks will still be able to offer Giannis the most money. Maybe he just wants to see how the year goes. It's not like the Bucks are going to pull their offer if Giannis doesn't sign in the next 7 days. If I were his agent, I'd take this to the summer so you can see ALL your options. Just because Giannis might not sign now doesn't 100% mean he's leaving. It just becomes more of a possibility since other teams will be able to get involved and the Bucks could be left with nothing. Their only hope would be that Giannis wants to go somewhere that can't truly afford him and they need to do a sign and trade with MIL. Sort of like what we just saw with Gordon Hayward and the Hornets/Celtics.
The Bucks have already come out and said they are not even going to consider trading Giannis at the deadline if he doesn't sign his extension. They're willing to risk it. That's a bold strategy considering if he does leave you have to think Jrue Holiday is turning down his player option next year so he too can hit the market and leave. Why would he want to be stuck on a rebuilding MIL team? There are going to be contenders that miss out in Giannis that will have money to spend. That's obviously the worst case scenario.
All I know is unless Giannis signs by the 21st, this is only going to become more of an issue. Bucks fans are going to have to hear about this every day of the regular season. Any sort of losing streak or blown lead is going to cause people to talk about Giannis leaving. God forbid they have another second round exit. You could probably kiss him goodbye if that happens.
I feel for Bucks fans a little bit, this has to be brutal to live through. As someone who has lost players from their favorite team to free agency I sort of get it, but they weren't back to back MVPs and generational talents. They're in for one lonnnnnnnng season unless something changes in the next 7 days. That's brutal.