“This is my city.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo screamed that in Milwaukee after one of his dunks — he lived at the rim all night against the New York defense — on his way to 37 points in a dominating performance that earned the Bucks the 121-111 win.
That all came against a New York team Antetokounmpo was tied to all summer with trade rumors — [it was the one place he reportedly was willing to go](https://www.nbcsports.com/nba/news/knicks-bucks-reportedly-discussed-giannis-antetokounmpo-trade-this-summer-but-talks-went-nowhere) — but when asked about that Tuesday by New York media, Antetokounmpo acted as if this was new to him. [From Stefan Bondy of the New York Post:](https://nypost.com/2025/10/29/sports/giannis-antetokounmpo-has-no-memory-of-knicks-interest/)
_“I don’t remember that,” Antetokounmpo said. “Right now I’m here representing my team, and that’s it. We beat the Knicks. So it doesn’t matter. What matters right now is we have a game in two days against Golden State, try to stay locked in and get two in a row. But I didn’t read that article. I try to stay away from all that rumors and speculation and trades. It doesn’t concern me one bit. I try to involve myself and I try to help my team win games.”_
Knicks fans can spin that as “he’s not saying he doesn’t want to come here,” but right now Antetokounmpo is all in on this season — and he is playing at an MVP level through four games. Milwaukee is now 3-1 and just beat the Knicks, which should lower the temperature of those rumors. The reality remains that Antetokounmpo will spend this full season with the Bucks — trading him and his $54.1 million salary to a place he wants to go would be next to impossible mid-season, with the tax apron restrictions — but how the Bucks ultimately fare in the playoffs will determine a lot. Next summer, the Bucks will put a max contract extension in front of Antetokounmpo, and whether he signs it or not will determine whether the heat gets turned up on high for those trade rumors, or turned off (for now).
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