Milwaukee Bucks legend sends message to fans following Giannis Antetokounmpo's trade

Now that Giannis is in Miami, Bucks fans might get in their feelings

Apr 08, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) looks on in the second half against the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Marques Johnson, one of the best players in Milwaukee Bucks history and an elder statesman of the community, isn’t holding a grudge. He said on Gil’s Arena, the podcast of former NBA baller, Gilbert Arenas, that he had “got into it” with fans online who don’t want Giannis Antetokounmpo to succeed in Miami. His message for the upset fans is to root for him. 

Bucks Analyst Marques Johnson says Bucks fans should be ROOTING for Giannis to succeed in Miami

He calls out any fan who is rooting against him after everything he gave to the city of Milwaukee and that franchise

He is spot on with this take. Giannis is the greatest Buck ever,… pic.twitter.com/1mUFAHhNnv

— Heat Central (@TheHeatCentral) September 18, 2026

He also explained how Antetokounmpo means a great deal to Milwaukee, citing who he is personally and how he delivered a title in 2021 plus won two most valuable player awards during his tenure. All of that was special stuff, and Johnson is right. 

Not everything lasts forever, particularly in the NBA. Fans naturally want their favorite star, especially if he was there since day one, to spend their careers in one spot as Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki did, but this is too much to ask. Aside from the well running dry, in most cases, stars want different things as the years go by, and Antetokounmpo shouldn’t be judged harshly for that — the failure to rip off the Band-Aid earlier is another story.

Still, even with that unsavory chapter, it doesn’t make much sense to hate on Antetokounmpo because the good far outweighs the bad, and the team wasn’t going to be relevant next season if he stayed. But he would’ve been.

Keep in mind that in the time after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was traded to Los Angeles in 1975 and just before Antetokounmpo was drafted in 2013, the Bucks had made four Eastern Conference Finals trips. Of course, the Bucks had some notable players in that time like Johnson, Sidney Moncrief, Ricky Pierce and Ray Allen, but they were never good enough.

If fans want to be frustrated at anyone, it should be management that started the beginning of the end when they changed up a team that had won 58 games in 2022-23. They lost in the first round against the Miami Heat, but that shouldn’t have been much of a surprise since Antetokounmpo was only present for 38 percent of the series minutes. The subsequent trade altered the DNA of the team, and they gave up an unprotected first-round pick in 2029 and unprotected swaps in 2028 and 2030 to get it done. 

The years that followed were a letdown, but a new chapter has started in Milwaukee. Antetokounmpo is going to do more noteworthy things in his new city and will potentially win another championship. That won’t erase the memories left behind. Thank goodness the fanbase has people like Johnson to listen to, who have lived and seen it all in this league. Following his advice is the best way to move on.