By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer
MIAMI (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo plans to say hello to Miami in a few days. First, he had to bid farewell to Milwaukee.
Antetokounmpo’s time with the Bucks officially ended Monday, when the trade sending him and Bobby Portis to the Heat for Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel’el Ware, Kasparas Jakucionis and draft capital was approved by the NBA.
Antetokounmpo plans to arrive in Miami in a few days to start his Heat era — and said in a video message posted Monday on social media that he will forever think of Milwaukee, the place where he spent 13 seasons, as his city.
“I want you to hear from my mouth, the city of Milwaukee will always be in my heart,” Antetokounmpo, a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player and 10-time All-Star, said in the video. “This is my home, and this is a place that I had my kids. … It made me the man that I am today. That will never ever change. No matter where I am, Milwaukee will always be my city, my team, my family.”
His run in Milwaukee ended with 21,531 points — by far the most in franchise history, more than 7,000 ahead of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s total during his tenure with the Bucks. Antetokounmpo is also Milwaukee’s all-time leader in rebounds and assists, plus he ranks second on the team’s career list in steals.
And now, he plays in Miami — a team desperate to get back into title contention, one that paid a ransom to make it happen.
“The announcement of today’s trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis Jr. is one of the great trades in Heat history,” Miami President Pat Riley said. “In my opinion, Giannis is one of the top five players in the league and Bobby is one of the best power forwards. The difficult part is trading Tyler, Kasparas, Jaime and Kel’el, who have given so much to this organization. We wish them nothing but the best.”
Bucks general manager Jon Horst released a statement saying the trade was in the best interest of everyone involved.
He also lauded Antetokounmpo, as would be expected.
“Since we drafted him in 2013, Giannis has transformed the Milwaukee Bucks in every way — on the court, in our locker room and throughout the community,” Horst said. “Over 13 seasons, he became an extraordinary leader, teammate and representative of this city, and one of the defining players of his generation. The standard he set will continue here.”
The highlight of Antetokounmpo’s 13 seasons in Milwaukee, of course, was the 2021 NBA title. He had 50 points in the Bucks’ title-clinching Game 6 victory over Phoenix, earning NBA Finals MVP honors in a landslide.
Antetokounmpo said then, and reiterated Monday, that Bucks fans deserved that moment.
“I believe the city of Milwaukee is blue collar,” he said in the video. “It’s people that work extremely hard every single day. They give all their hard-earned money just to come watch the Milwaukee Bucks, to come and feel something, to come, to be a part of us.
“I hope that I was able to represent them the best that I could. And I was like them. I showed up to work, did everything. I was willing to do all the dirty work, just like them. I hope that bringing a trophy to this city meant something to them, because it meant so much to me.”
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AP Sports Writer Steve Megargee in Milwaukee contributed to this report.
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