A Greek report revealed last week that the reason Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo has been missing Greece national basketball team’s friendlies is because of an unpaid insurance which is customary for NBA players who participate in international tournaments to represent their country.
Money was not the issue behind but more about the situation over in Wisconsin with Antetokounmpo’s future was heavily discussed and some people thought he is ready to move on to another team.
“Perhaps because the Bucks are waiting to see whether the much-talked-about trade will happen or if Giannis will stay in Milwaukee. Otherwise, the agreement will have to be made with his next team,” SDNA wrote in Greek language.
Giannis has no new team. He will stay with the Bucks.
However, there’s still no positive development according to Euro Hoops reporter Aris Barkas ( @arbarkas on X) and there is a great chance that he will miss Greece’s friendly with Montenegro.
Per Eurohoops sources, due to his contract, the Bucks have to give their permission, because the insurance policy of FIBA, which is already taken care of by the Greek federation, doesn’t cover his full annual compensation in case of an injury. There’s a cap on the insurance contract, and Giannis, Jokic, and Doncic are some of the very few non-US players who are paid well over this limit.
Antetokounmpo posted how eager he is to play for his country on August 4.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is eager to play in EuroBasket
EuroBasket 2025 will commence on August 28 and their first game will be against Italy in Group C. Their last prep game will be against France on August 24.
Greece head coach Vassilis Spanoulis already said that he was not sure about his star player’s availability for the Montenegro friendlies but he insisted that he will play in the tournament.
EuroHoops also clarified that NBA champion is eager to play but his case is special.
Greece comes to the tournament as among the favorites to win it all. Other top four contenders are Serbia which has 3-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, France which got Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanyama, and Germany which got the Wagner brothers and Dennis Schroder.
Antetokounmpo was the top scorer in the last edition but his team only reached the quarterfinals of the tournament after losing to Germany.
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