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Giannis Antetokounmpo is on a five-year, $228 million supermax extension with the Milwaukee Bucks, which he signed in 2020. However, after seeing Saudi Arabia teams hand out offers worth a staggering $776 million for a single season, he wanted more.
Saudi Arabia based teams have already made some outrageous offers and signed big-box players like Christiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, and Neymar. Ronaldo, among other players, will be paid nearly $200 million per year.
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He was the first superstar to sign with a Saudi Arabia team. However, his salary almost seems meager when you look at the contract that was offered to Kylian Mbappe.
NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo has been keeping track of these offers and was recently asked if he was truly down to suit up for a Saudi Arabia team after his NBA career is over.
With a smile on his face, he told TMZ sports:
"Of course....If the NBA worked out, maybe like a trade between the NBA and Saudi Arabia League, I'm there!"
It is not clear if Antetokounmpo is serious given that he has consistently preached and maintained loyalty to the Milwaukee Bucks. That said, he is also not alone in hinting that he would go to Saudi Arabia. LeBron James also has made comments about his willingness to take up a big offer.
While James' post is comical, it is still a strong possibility for him to take up a Saudi Arabian contract similar to Antetokounmpo. At the moment, any such news is mostly just jokes and murmurs which need not be taken seriously by NBA fans.
Both Antetokounmpo and James will be suiting up for their respective teams in the upcoming NBA season and for the foreseeable future.
Saudi Arabia football team, Al Hilal, sends Giannis Antetokounmpo a custom jersey
After Giannis Antetokounmpo jokingly expressed interest in taking up Kylian Mbappe's Saudi Arabia contract, Al Hilal took notice and sent him a custom jersey.
Al Hilal also posted this on social media, saying:
“Your jersey is ready @Giannis_An34. Welcome ‘GIANNIS’ to our family,” Al Hilal’s official Twitter account tweeted.
Antetokounmpo appreciated the gift given his interest in soccer and the lucrative Saudi Arabia player contracts. In the past, he has expressed a profound love for soccer as his dad used to play the sport. He had this to say about soccer:
“If I wasn’t a basketball player, I would be a soccer player for sure."
Antetokounmpo promptly responded to Al Hilal's post and uploaded a picture of himself and Neymar, who recently signed a deal with Al Hilal. It is likely that the player was indicating that they would be teammates.
"Best duo in Saudi league!!"
Giannis Antetokounmpo did mean this in good humor and has no official immediate plans to move to Saudi Arabia.
