The Milwaukee Bucks are really doing everything they can to keep Giannis Antetokounmpo in the Deer District. Rumors of him wanting to leave town have been raging since Shams Charania revealed at the start of the summer that Giannis is exploring his options outside Milwaukee.
The Bucks have been busy trying to make moves to keep their two-time MVP at all costs.
On Monday, the Bucks made another one by signing Giannis' youngest brother, Alex, to a two-way contract and allowing the Antetokounmpo brothers to put their names in the NBA's history books.
"Alex joins brothers Giannis and Thanasis , giving Milwaukee the first trio of brothers on active NBA contracts with the same team in league history," wrote Hoopswire founder Amico. "Call it what it is — a nice story and maybe a little roster diplomacy. Giannis' long-term happiness matters, and this certainly doesn't hurt."
The 24-year-old Alex was undrafted in the 2021 NBA Draft. He played for the Sacramento Kings ' 2021 Summer League title team. He spent time in the G League with the Raptors 905 and the Bucks' affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd.
This marks the second time that the Bucks have signed Alex to a deal. They did so in 2023 just to keep his G-League rights, but waived him on the same day. But this time around, it's not just ceremonial.
Although he will still spend time in the G-League, Alex is eligible to play in 50 NBA regular-season games with a two-way deal. That sets up the brothers to make more history as the first trio of siblings to play together in the same NBA game
To make way for Alex's signing, the Bucks waived guard prospect Jamaree Bouyea , who played for the University of San Francisco from 2017 to 2022 and was a two-time first-team All-WCC selection and a member of the G-League All-NBA second team in 2023. Milwaukee signed the 6'2" Bouyea just last March. Unfortunately, he became collateral damage.
With Greak Freak rumors swirling, the Bucks waived the injured Damian Lillard . They stretched the remaining money on his contract so that they could sign former Indiana Pacers starting center Myles Turner and give Giannis more help this season. Then the Bucks recently re-signed his brother Thanasis to a one-year $2.9 million deal in what many thought sealed Giannis' fate in Deer District.
However, Charania recently revealed that the Bucks and New York Knicks engaged in Giannis trade talks this past summer, leaving the door open once again for the possibility of the 6'11" forward leaving town. Milwaukee's latest move, adding Alex, is probably the boldest one.
Giannis has spoken about how important family is to him; obviously, this is what it's all about. Like Giannis, Alex is a physical specimen — he is listed at 6'8" with a 7'2" wingspan. However, he has not found consistent success everywhere he's played and the Bucks just waived a legit guard prospect to sign him.
Giannis has another brother, Kostas, who played with him and Thanasis on Greece's bronze-medal-winning team at the recent EuroBasket. However, Marc Stein said he is not eligible for a two-way contract. Maybe if he were, the Bucks would have gone all-out because, as Amico said, Giannis' happiness is their priority.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Oct 14, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
