"Not gonna be playing for any other team" - Shannon Sharpe calls out Giannis Antetokounmpo for nepotism in passionate rant
For most of his Milwaukee Bucks tenure, Giannis Antetokounmpo has been teammates with at least one of his brothers. While most fans see this as a feel-good story, one analyst has a different point of view.
During a recent episode of ESPN's "First Take," Shannon Shapre went on a passionate rant about Giannis Antetokounmpo. He brought up the former MVP's recent comments regarding surrounding him with talent. Sharpe then called out Giannis for wanting for talent but also forcing the Bucks to use roster spots on his brothers.
"You got your brothers occupying two roster spots," Sharpe said. "You know good and well Giannis your brothers probably not going to be playing for any other team in the NBA except Milwaukee and that's only because of you."
"So you keep talking surrounding you with talent, there's two spots that's being occupied by your brothers."
A few weeks ago, the Milwaukee Bucks brought by Thanasis Antetokounmpo on a one-year deal. Over his four years with the franchise, he has averaged 2.7 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists.
Are the Milwaukee Bucks wasting roster spots on Giannis Antetokounmpo's brothers?
On the one hand, it's easy to agree with what Shannon Sharpe said regarding the Milwaukee Bucks. While Giannis Antetokounmpo has proven to be a generational talent, the same cannot be said for his brothers. Despite this, the organization continues to re-sign them.
It's clear Milwaukee does this to keep their star player happy, which isn't a bad thing. As a small-market franchise, they need to do more to take care of stars to keep them around. Especially in this case, as Giannis is unclear about what he wants to do moving forward.
As for hurting the talent pool on the roster, the Bucks aren't hurting themselves in this scenario. Thanasis Antetokounmpo takes up the final roster spot, and is on a veteran's minimum contract. This leaves the front off room and cap flexibility to improve the core and rotation players.
Looking at most NBA teams, the final roster spot is typically taken up by a young player who rarely gets playing time. In some cases, teams just leave it open in case a player becomes available later in the year. At the end of the day, it's a roster spot that doesn't have much impact in the grand scheme of things.
Since the final roster spot doesn't mean much, the Bucks are doing the right thing by using it on a player who makes their franchise pillar happy.