Stacey King Shocked At Bulls Not Hiring Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Mother And Brother Kostas During Recruitment

Joseph Galizia | 05/09/2025
Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo poses with his mother following his award of the NBA most valuable player at the 2019 NBA Awards show at Barker Hanger.

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future in Milwaukee has been hanging in limbo for some time now. Rumors circulated that the Greek Freak was interested in leaving to explore offers from another team, with insider, Shams Charania, pushing this narrative. Fortunately for Bucks fans, they can rest easy since it appears the 30-year-old superstar will remain a Buck.

One person that did bum out was three-time NBA Champion Stacey King. The retired veteran, who now does commentary for the Chicago Bulls, joked that the Bulls could have lured Giannis to Windy City by catering toward the thing he loves the most: his family.

King spoke on this topic on the latest edition of his Gimme The Hot Sauce podcast. He began by joking about how Thanasis Antetokounmpo re-signed with the Bucks on a one-year $2.9 million deal, thus proving that Giannis was getting whatever he wanted from Milwaukee to assure he doesn’t leave.

“As long as Giannis is there, whatever Giannis wants, Giannis is gonna get. If Giannis wants all his brothers on his squad, which I’m really surprised he hasn’t really pulled that card,” said the old Bulls center.

He then brought up how Giannis’s other brother, Kostas, has been performing quite well in EuroLeague. “He’s playing really well in Euroleague. I’ve been waiting to see if he would pull the string to get his other brother over there.”

More importantly, King pointed to the fact that Chicago has one of the biggest Greek communities in the United States (estimated 150,000 people). He then joked that if it were up to him, he would have signed Kostas, Thanasis, and even Gianni’s mother to make sure the Greek Freak joined the Bulls.

“That would have been awesome if we could have done that. I would have hired his mom. See if she wanted to come in and be an assistant coach. Her job would have been to just run in the kitchen, make sure we have Gianni’s food. Whatever he likes to eat.”

While it’s clear that King is joking, it’s not a terrible idea to bring in Veronica. She could certainly provide whatever team her baby boy played for with some motivation and love. Plus, it would most likely give Giannis an added boost. Why? Because the 2021 NBA Champ loves his mama more than most.

Last season, after he dropped 59 points, Giannis expressed his love for his mother for her everlasting support on his journey toward NBA supremacy.

“I’m happy to see my mom out there, she’s come to every Bucks game I’ve ever played,” he said. “I always know that she’s out there, you know having my back, praying for me. You know, have fingers crossed every single free throw that I shoot. But she always supports me, you know so I love her to death. I am who I am. I am the man that I am because of my mom. And everything I do, on the court, off the court, it’s for her.”

Giannis may laugh at King’s jokes about signing his whole family, but there’s a deeper truth underneath it all. Family is the foundation of everything he does. The Bucks keeping Thanasis around isn’t just a contract detail. It’s a reminder that the 2x MVP’s loyalty is tied to love and support beyond basketball.

Whether it’s his brothers on the bench or his mom cheering in the stands, those bonds fuel the Greek Freak’s greatness. And as long as Milwaukee keeps embracing that, they’ll have every reason to believe Giannis isn’t going anywhere.

Post Edited By: Samir Mehdi
Giannis Antetokounmpo stacey king Thanasis Antetokounmpo

About the author

Joseph Galizia

Joseph is a Las Vegas based actor and circus performer. For the last seven years he's had the pleasure of covering sports for multiple outlets, including the Lifestyles section of Sports Illustrated. In that time, he's conducted over 50 interviews with athletes, filmmakers, and company founders to further cement his footprint in the journalism world. He's excited to bring that skillset to the SportsRush, where he'll be covering the NBA news cycle.

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