Karl-Anthony Towns isn’t the only star player with an extension looming: As of Oct. 1, Giannis Antetokounmpo is eligible to sign an extension with the Miami Heat.
He won’t sign one, at least not until January. Or maybe next summer.
It’s not that Antetokounmpo doesn’t want to lock down his future in Miami, or that the Heat are trying to lowball him. This is all about the money for Antetokounmpo.
While eligible, the max extension he can sign right now is three years at an estimated $194 million, numbers [via Bobby Marks at ESPN](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/50166436/rookie-veteran-contract-extensions-towns-giannis-jokic). Wait until after Jan. 6 — six months after the trade from Milwaukee — and that extension number jumps to four years, $276 million. That extension would replace his $62.8 million player extension for next season. Or, Antetokounmpo could decline that player option, become a free agent this summer and re-sign with Miami for five years, $357 million.
Antetokounmpo has not been a player who leaves money on the table in the past. He is 31 years old (32 in December), and the Heat might prefer a four-year extension over a five-year one. This was likely all worked out with a handshake deal before the Heat traded a lot of picks and players to Milwaukee to make this deal happen.
One thing that won’t come up is a lot of rumors about Antetokounmpo, he’s going to re-sign in Miami and they are going to try to build a contender around him and Bam Adebayo. The only question is what exactly his next contract looks like.
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