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Giannis: It'd Be 'Awesome' to Team Up with Brothers in 'Milwaukee, LA, Whatever'

Mike Chiari

Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo expressed interest Monday in teaming up with his brothers on the same NBA squad in the future.

In an interview with Mackenzie Salmon of Sports Pulse (h/t USA Today), Giannis said it would be "awesome" to join forces with his brothers in "Milwaukee, L.A., whatever."

Giannis' older brother, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, is currently his teammate in Milwaukee, while his younger brother, Kostas Antetokounmpo, is under a two-way contract with the Los Angeles Lakers.

With Giannis on track to possibly win his second consecutive NBA MVP award, the fact that next season is the final year of his current contract has been one of the hottest topics of discussion within NBA circles.

The Bucks went an NBA-best 60-22 last season and reached the Eastern Conference Finals, and they own an NBA-best record of 46-8 this season. If they can take the next step and reach the NBA Finals this time around, perhaps that will go a long way toward keeping him in Milwaukee.

Either the Lakers or Los Angeles Clippers could be attractive to Giannis due to the big-market appeal, but making room for him may be difficult. The Lakers have so much money tied up in LeBron James and Anthony Davis, while the Clippers have committed most of their cap space to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

Since Thanasis and Kostas are end-of-the-bench role players at this point in their careers, it likely wouldn't be too tough for Giannis, 25, to convince a team to sign all three of them.

The 27-year-old Thanasis is in his second NBA season, and he is averaging 2.0 points per game in 15 appearances for the Bucks. The 22-year-old Kostas is also a second-year player who is averaging 0.3 rebounds and 0.3 assists in three games for the Lakers. He has spent most of 2019-20 with the Lakers' G League affiliate, averaging 14.1 points and 7.6 rebounds per game for South Bay.

Giannis is such a franchise-changing star that if he stipulates a team must sign his brothers in order to land him, there is little doubt that any team in the league would try to comply.

When the Bucks and Lakers met in December, all three Antetokounmpo brothers swapped jerseys and created a memorable moment in the process:

All three brothers suiting up for the same team would be an even bigger deal since it has never happened in the history of the NBA.

Giannis' free-agency decision will be one of the biggest storylines in basketball until it is resolved, but the status of his brothers and how Giannis' choice will impact them is a fun subplot worth following as well.

   

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