Giannis Antetokounmpo to miss European championships; Greek federation alleges conspiracy

On Saturday morning, Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo posted an important message on social media. In the post, which was written in Greek, he expressed his regret that he would not be able to play for the Greek national team in the upcoming EuroBasket 2017 (European championships), which begins on Aug. 31, due to a knee injury.

What has ensued since that post went live has been nothing short of bizarre.

Antetokounmpo's message not only put Bucks fans on alert that Milwaukee's best player could be dealing with a serious setback, but it also elicited an accusation from the Greek basketball federation alleging the Bucks and NBA were involved in an "organized and well-staged plan" to keep Antetokounmpo from playing for his national team.

That accusation has flatly and unequivocally been denied by both the Bucks and NBA in a pair of statements that were issued late Saturday night and early Sunday morning.

During the lead-up to EuroBasket, Antetokounmpo missed all but one of Greece's warm-up games due to his ailing right knee. This week, Antetokounmpo failed a physical exam administered by the Bucks in China where he is serving as an NBA ambassador, but not playing, in a basketball tournament in Shanghai. He was expected to return to the Greek national team following his appearance to participate in EuroBasket, which will no longer be the case.

The full text of Antetokounmpo's message included him saying that being unable to play for the Greek national team this summer is "by far the biggest disappointment in my career." The post can be read below:

The Greek basketball federation responded to this news by alleging that Antetokounmpo's announcement was part of a greater conspiracy by the Bucks and NBA to keep the 22-year-old star from participating in the EuroBasket.

“The simultaneous briefing by the manager of the Milwaukee Bucks and by Giannis Antetokounmpo himself via phone and social media from distant China — and not in the proper formal form — for his inability to play for the Greek national team, brought us sadness due to this great loss, but unfortunately it does not surprise us," the federation said in a statement, according to a translation by Eurohoops.net.

"A series of clues by which we were particularly worried about since Giannis arrived in Greece and the national team training camp started, had created the conviction of an organized and well-staged plan by the NBA franchise in which Giannis has signed. Everything was in full knowledge of the NBA, if not encouraged by the NBA, and the athlete was put in a very difficult place and ultimately was obliged today to inform that he can’t be a member of the national team."

According to an Associated Press story, the Greek basketball federation does not believe that Antetokounmpo is injured at all and will soon provide more details on the situation. Takis Tsagronis, the federation general secretary, did not mince words when discussing Antetokounmpo's announcement, saying scans showed nothing wrong with Antetokounmpo's knee.

"This (Antetokounmpo's absence) is bad but not unexpected news. All indications were that it would end up like that," Tsagronis told state television network ERT.

"We, on our side, did everything not to give the Bucks an excuse. We took a magnetic scan of Giannis' leg and it was clean. What the Bucks claim is not the reality; something else is happening."

That assertion led the NBA to put out a statement on Saturday night refuting any notion that Antetokounmpo's injury was staged.

"The NBA and the Milwaukee Bucks have followed all appropriate protocol under the NBA-FIBA agreement," said Tim Frank, the NBA's senior vice president of basketball communications. "Giannis has an injury that has been confirmed through multiple examinations and any suggestion to the contrary is false."

The Bucks took things a step further with a statement that was released early Sunday morning. The statement, which came from general manager Jon Horst, detailed the events that led to Antetokounmpo removing himself from EuroBasket competition.

The full statement from Horst is as follows:

"After a brief time in training with the Greek National Team, Giannis reported to our basketball staff that he was having right anterior knee pain following certain movements. At this time, we contacted the Greek National Team and requested that Giannis stop on-court running and jumping for a period of time to rest. Bucks Team Physician Dr. William Raasch consulted with Dr. Voulgaropoulos of the Greek National Team regarding the injury and as a result Giannis continued to sit out from training.

"Giannis recently left his national team to travel to China for an appearance. Here he was visited by Bucks Head of Strength and Conditioning Suki Hobson. Hobson put Giannis through a series of exercises to evaluate his knee and reported that he was still experiencing significant pain on basic movements. 

"After reviewing the report filed by Hobson, Dr. Raasch recommended that due to the recurring knee pain, Giannis should not continue to attempt to play at this time and that the best course of action would be for him to return to Milwaukee for further evaluation and to begin a structured, daily rehabilitation program. 

"While he is very disappointed that he will not be competing for his national team at this time, we agree with our medical staff’s recommendation and feel this is in Giannis' best interest. He is scheduled to return to Milwaukee this week to begin his daily treatment and rehabilitation program in order to be ready for Bucks Training Camp."

Antetokounmpo, one of the league's fastest-rising stars and the centerpiece of Milwaukee's roster, is coming off a breakout season in which he started in the All-Star Game and earned second-team all-NBA honors.

During his first four seasons in the NBA, Antetokounmpo was notably durable. He missed just two games this season — one due to illness and the other for rest when Milwaukee's playoff seed was secured — and has missed only 10 games total since being drafted in 2013.

His first six missed games came as the result of "coach's decision," with five coming in the first month of his rookie season and the sixth when he was inexplicably benched late in 2014-'15. Antetokounmpo then started the 2015-'16 season by serving a suspension for shoving Mike Dunleavy during the 2015 playoffs.

Later that season, on Dec. 20, 2015, Antetokounmpo missed his only game to date due to injury. The official explanation offered by the team was patellar tendinitis in his left knee. Milwaukee won that game at Phoenix and Antekounmpo returned for the next contest three days later and did not miss another game for the rest of the season.

Antetokounmpo is set to begin a four-year, $100 million contract extension this season. The extent of his knee injury and whether or not it will impact him going forward is unknown. Anterior knee pain is commonly associated with patellar tendinitis — a common ailment among NBA players referred to as "jumper's knee" — but it is unclear whether that is what Antekounmpo is presently dealing with.

"Last year I had the option to freeze the deal for my new contract," Antetokounmpo wrote in his post. "This year I have no choice.

"I'm injured, the pains haven't subsided, and I have to get better."