The Bucks are in hot water for their handling of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s playing status.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Friday that the team is under investigation for potentially violating the league’s “player participation policy and potential inconsistent statements.”
The team won’t medically clear Antetokounmpo, who hyperextended his knee on Mar. 15, per Charania, although the two-time NBA MVP has vowed he’s healthy and ready to take the court.
“You know who you are dealing with,” Antetokounmpo told reporters Friday.
“For somebody to come and tell me to not play or not to compete it’s like a slap in my face. So, I don’t know where the relationship goes from there.”
“I’ve never seen a case of a player saying, my caliber of player, that’s like, I’m saying it publicly, I want to f–king play. You know what I’m saying?” Antetokounmpo added. “I don’t think I’ve seen this. So, if there needs to be an investigation, great. There should be. I don’t know. There should be. Until we figure something out.”
Charania added to the report on Saturday, saying that the Bucks told NBA investigators that Antetokounmpo declined the opportunity to play 3-on-3 scrimmages as part of the return protocol from his knee injury. The team’s franchise player told the league he is healthy enough to take the court.
Late last month, the National Basketball Players Association suggested that the Bucks, who are 30-47 and eliminated from playoff contention, were tanking and holding a healthy superstar out of the lineup.
“The Player Participation Policy was designed by the league to hold teams accountable and ensure that when an All-Star like Giannis Antetokounmpo is healthy and ready to play, he is on the court,” the union wrote in a statement.
In the days after the injury, the team reportedly approached Antetokounmpo about sitting out the rest of the season, but he insisted on trying to get back on the court.
The face-off marks yet another rift between Antetokounmpo and the Bucks, who drafted him No. 15 overall in 2013 and won a championship with the Greece native in 2021.
Trade rumors swirled last offseason and during this season with various reports about Antetokounmpo’s desire to leave the only franchise he’s known.
Before the trade deadline, Milwaukee opted to hold on to Antetokounmpo, who is averaging 27.6 points with 9.8 rebounds in 36 games this season, despite rumors that he could be dealt.
In March, Bucks co-owner Wes Edens said he doesn’t want Antetokounmpo, who has one year plus a player option for the 2027-28 season left on the three-year, $186 million extension he signed in 2023, playing out the 2026-27 NBA season with the team without a new deal.
