The time has come to say goodbye to Giannis Antetokounmpo, the greatest player in Milwaukee Bucks history.
The Bucks reached an agreement late Monday night to trade Antetokounmpo, long one of the NBA’s top players, to the Miami Heat, along with fan favorite Bobby Portis, according to multiple reports. Antetokounmpo and Portis were the last holdovers from the Bucks team that won the 2021 NBA championship.
In return, the Bucks will get a haul of players and draft picks, among them All-Star Tyler Herro, a Greenfield native and former Whitnall High School star, along with a trio of solid young players – Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel’el Ware and Kasparas Jakucionis.
The Bucks also reportedly get the No. 13 selection that will be made in Tuesday night’s NBA draft, along with a first-round pick swap in 2030, first-round picks in 2031 and 2033 and a second-rounder in 2033. The trade will need league approval.
The writing appeared to be on the wall on Monday concerning Antetokounmpo’s future in Milwaukee when he posted on social media: “GOD, I trusted you at the beginning, and I will continue to trust you throughout.”
GOD, I trusted you at the beginning, and I will continue to trust you throughout. 🙏🏽💯 pic.twitter.com/BuRHnQS2NQ
— Giannis Antetokounmpo (@Giannis_An34) June 22, 2026
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Antetokounmpo, 31, sits atop the Bucks’ all-time leaderboard in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and triple-doubles. He won two NBA MVP awards, an NBA Defensive Player of the Year award and Finals MVP honors for his legendary performance in the 2021 NBA Finals, when he delivered the Bucks’ first league title in 50 years, and just the second in franchise history.
Antetokounmpo finishes his Milwaukee career with 21,531 points, the most scored in Bucks history, well ahead of Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 14,211. Abdul-Jabbar, then known as Lew Alcindor, led the Bucks to their first NBA title in 1971. During his six seasons in Milwaukee, Abdul-Jabbar won three MVP awards and had been considered the franchise’s greatest player until Antetokounmpo came along.
Antetokounmpo won the love and admiration of Bucks fans near and far after leading the team to its second NBA championship, but there’s been noticeable frustration among the Bucks fan base amidst growing speculation that Antetokounmpo had played his last game in a Milwaukee uniform and the drama that has surrounded the situation.
Nicknamed “The Greek Freak,” Antetokounmpo was the 15th overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft. He played 13 seasons in Milwaukee and became a franchise cornerstone and one of the most popular players ever to wear a Bucks uniform. Antetokounmpo’s popularity resulted in the creation of a mural honoring him on a Downtown office building.
After winning the title in 2021, the Bucks have struggled to meet expectations, most notably in the postseason. After reaching the Eastern Conference semifinals the season after capturing the championship, the Bucks were eliminated in the first round in each of the next three seasons, in part because of an aging roster and injuries to key players, including Antetokounmpo.
The Bucks missed the playoffs entirely last season – their first postseason absence since the 2015-16 season. Milwaukee finished 2025-26 with a 32-50 record, 11th in the Eastern Conference. Antetokounmpo was limited to just 36 games last season due to injuries, including a calf issue and left knee hyperextension and bone bruise that caused him to miss the final 15 games of the season.
Antetokounmpo averaged 27.6 points per game last season, his lowest since 2017-18.
Antetokounmpo has professed adoration for Milwaukee but also repeatedly expressed his desire to win another championship, whether with the Bucks or elsewhere. The Bucks made a series of dramatic moves in an effort to make that come to fruition, including trading for superstar guard Damian Lillard in 2023, whose two seasons in Milwaukee ended with a torn Achilles tendon in a 2025 first-round playoff series loss to the Indiana Pacers. The Bucks subsequently waived Lillard and signed coveted free-agent Myles Turner, who had an at-times disappointing first season with the Bucks.
The Bucks also shuffled coaches in an effort to return to glory. Mike Budenholzer, who led the Bucks to the 2021 NBA crown, was fired in May 2023 following top-seeded Milwaukee’s shocking first-round playoff loss to the eighth-seeded Miami Heat.
Adrian Griffin came next, but his tenure was short-lived. The Bucks fired Griffin midway through the next season despite leading Milwaukee to a 30-13 record at that point. Doc Rivers then took the reins in January 2024, remaining in the role until his departure at the end of last season.
The Bucks turned to former Memphis Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins to replace Rivers, signing him to a six-year contract this spring as he faces the daunting task in rejuvenating the floundering Bucks.
Although the trade of Antetokounmpo means the loss of the Bucks franchise player, Milwaukee fans will certainly feel the sting of the departure of Portis, a big-time fan favorite who has been highly active in charitable efforts in the community and has repeatedly expressed his affinity for the city and the fans. The Little Rock, Arkansas, native, an 11-year NBA veteran, spent six highly productive seasons in Milwaukee.
“It’s home. I’ve been here since 2020. It’s just great to partner with an organization that believes in me,” Portis said at Bucks media day last September. “It’s been a great experience for me being here in Milwaukee. It definitely would have been weird going to another franchise. I’m happy I’m here, for sure.”
Like Portis, Antetokounmpo and his family have been active in building ties to the community. Antetokounmpo purchased a minority ownership stake in the Milwaukee Brewers in August 2021. He and his wife, Mariah, also have developed a longtime philanthropic relationship with Milwaukee Diaper Mission.
Antetokounmpo will leave Milwaukee having made an indelible mark on the Bucks franchise and the city. He completely transformed a moribund franchise. In his first NBA season (2013-14), the Bucks finished with a 15-67 record, worst in franchise history. Five years later, the Bucks rolled to a 60-22 record. Two years later, the Bucks reached the pinnacle, leading to one of the biggest celebrations that city has ever experienced.
