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Giannis says Milwaukee will always be in my heart as Bucks-Heat trade made official Giannis Antetokounmpo released two farewell videos to the Bucks and the city of Milwaukee on Monday, saying in one that the city will always be in my heart and will always be my city, my team, my family.
I want you to hear it from my mouth.
The city of Milwaukee will always be in my heart, Antetokounmpo said in an initial short video released on social media.
This is my home and this is a place that I had my kids.
My mom is here.
My father is here.
My brothers played here.
It made me the man that I am today.
That will never ever change.
No matter where I am, Milwaukee will always be my city, my team, my family.
ADVERTISING The trade of Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat became official Monday, with Tyler Herro, Kelel Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakucionis, the No.
13 pick (Nate Ament) and future draft considerations going to Milwaukee for Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis.
Antetokounmpo was the first party to acknowledge the trade.
The city of Milwaukee and the state of Wisconsin, I want them to remember this from me, Antetokounmpo said in the video.
Dont worry about the basket.
Dont worry about the championship.
Dont worry about the winnings.
Dont worry about the losses.
I tried to be like them.
I believe the city of Milwaukee is blue collar.
Its people that work extremely hard every single day.
They give all their hard earned money just to come watch the Milwaukee Bucks.
To come and feel something.
To come to be a part of us.
I hope that I was able to represent them the best that I could.
And I was like them, I showed up to work, did everything, I was willing to do all the dirty work, just like them.
I hope that bringing a trophy to the city meant something to them because it meant so much to me.
Shortly thereafter, the Bucks posted a letter from general manager Jon Horst.
There are few players in the history of professional sports who have elevated a franchise, a city and a fan base the way Giannis Antetokounmpo has for Milwaukee and the Bucks, Horst wrote.
Giannis arrived in Milwaukee from Greece as an 18-year-old with exceptional potential, relentless determination and an unwavering belief in what could be achieved.
In his next 13 seasons, he became one of the greatest players in basketball history, the heart of our organization and the driving force behind an extraordinary era of Bucks basketball that will always be honored.
On behalf of our entire organization, please join us in expressing our deepest gratitude to Giannis and his family.
This decision is in the best interest of both the Bucks and Giannis.
I understand the emotions this news brings, and I share them.
Im confident our path forward provides a strong foundation for sustained success.
As we begin the next chapter of Bucks basketball, we do so with optimism, purpose and a clear vision to build on our standard of excellence while strengthening our competitive identity and winning culture under the leadership of our new head coach, Taylor Jenkins.
After the trade was announced, Antetokounmpo also released a video on his YouTube page featuring a final interview with longtime Bucks play-by-play broadcaster Jim Paschke.
Hopefully, when people see me and think about me, they think about the things that Ive done for the team and things that Ive done for the city and how Ive carried myself and how I grew in this city, Antetokounmpo told Paschke.
And hopefully, they remember those moments (rather) than the things other people say about me.
Interviews with Paschke were an annual preseason tradition in Paschkes final seasons with the team before he retired in 2021, the same season Antetokounmpo helped lead the Bucks to their first championship since 1971.
During the Bucks championship celebration at Fiserv Forum, Antetokounmpo wore a shirt with Paschkes image on it.
Ive played only on two teams in my life, Antetokounmpo told Paschke.
Ive been here 13 years and the team prior to the Bucks, I was there for four, five years.
This is where I raised my family.
This is where my kids were born.
This is my home.
This is where I built all of my memories.
This is where I became who I am today.
Some people talk to me in the street and they say, Giannis, always do whats best for your family and do whats best for you.
Youve done so much for the city.
I can remember where I was when you won the championship and Ive been waiting for this for 30 years.
The two-time NBA MVP also admitted that moving away from Milwaukee brings about uncertainty.
Im scared, Antetokounmpo said.
Im scared of change.
Im scared that the grass is not always greener.
Im scared of, like, people love me here.
People respect me here.
People allow me to be myself in the city and Im scared that I might never find that again.
But this is something that I wake up every single day or when I take my showers at night and I think, maybe Ive waited too long.
I see guys playing deep into the playoffs and I think maybe if I switch teams and I go somewhere else and I have a better opportunity, I can play deep into the playoffs, I can go try to chase another championship because I really want that.
And Im scared that if I dont take that decision, that when Im going to be 37, 38 years old and Im retiring, Im going to be like, Why? Why didnt you take that risk? And people dont understand, its a risk.
The interview was recorded in the Bucks former practice facility at Archdiocese of Milwaukee in St.
Francis.
It may have been recorded before Antetokounmpo knew the Heat were acquiring him, as there are no references made to his new team in the 30-minute interview.
Antetokounmpo said he hopes the city of Milwaukee will still welcome him when he returns in a different jersey.
He even said it would be great to one day return to Milwaukee at the end of his career, as Kevin Garnett did with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Antetokounmpo did not discuss his final few months with the Bucks, or what led to his breakup with the franchise at the end of this past season.
He did touch on why he would welcome a move to a different team.
The whole journey has been beautiful, Antetokounmpo said.
I am extremely blessed, beyond blessed, and if God tells me that one championship is what my journey is supposed to be, I am extremely blessed and I will never question things that he has in store for me.
I will never question his will, never.
But I want a second one.
And I believe that I am capable of doing it.
I thank God Im blessed with incredible talent and incredible willpower of putting the work in and trying to chase that.
But if it doesnt happen, I wont look back and say, Yeah, I failed.
Because everything is part of a journey and everything leads to something, so Ill never look back and say I failed.
Now officially a member of the Heat, Antetokounmpo will continue his journey for a second championship in a different city for the first time in his NBA career.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
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