Well, Giannis Antetokounmpo will stay put with the Milwaukee Bucks. The team elected to keep their two-time MVP for the rest of the season. In so doing, they also wanted to get some shots in at NBA Insider Shams Charania for this supposedly momentous occasion.
Bucks Take Shot at Shams Charania Over Giannis Antetokounmpo Rumors
Following confirmation that Antetokounmpo was staying, Doc Rivers and the Bucks decided to troll Charania by referencing his presence in the upcoming celebrity All-Star game at the All-Star break.
The Bucks posted on X with the following caption reading, “Just In: Conversations have started about (Charania’s) future, and discussing whether the ESPN Senior NBA Insider’s best fit is staying on Giannis’ All-Star Celebrity team or elsewhere,” which also included a press conference of Rivers saying (which he prefaced as an Antetokounmpo update):
“I was just talking about (Antetokounmpo) is going to coach the celebrity game,” Rivers said. “You guys see that? … He did inform me that he’s going to put Shams on the trading block today, and he’s just going to listen to offers, so I’m just gonna go make that announcement right now.”
Just In: Conversations have started about @ShamsCharania’s future, and discussing whether the ESPN Senior NBA Insider’s best fit is staying on Giannis’ All-Star Celebrity team or elsewhere. pic.twitter.com/IS6XMlQSPf
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) February 5, 2026
This is in reference to Charania reporting multiple times that Antetokounmpo may want out of Milwaukee. Charania has never said, straight-up, that Antetokounmpo wanted out, but has at multiple points insinuated, rather vaguely, that the two sides were heading for a split. It didn’t happen when many thought it had reached a tipping point, so the Bucks decided to have some fun with it. Good for them?
But, sorry, do they seriously think this is some sort of victory lap? It isn’t. Antetokounmpo staying only makes his potential departure an even bigger elephant in the room. They didn’t solve the problem. They just put it off until next summer. This doesn’t change anything.
The Bucks are still 20-29, putting them out of the play-in, and Antetokounmpo will be out until, at best, mid-to-late February, which will likely put them even further from the playoffs. They are one of the most directionless franchises, which is impressive given that they employ one of the top three players in the NBA.
There are still so many questions they haven’t answered, and plenty of people will second-guess their decision to keep Antetokounmpo when it’s clear this current team doesn’t work with no options to get better. But hey, at least they roasted Charania. It’s those little victories that truly justify all the dysfunction.
