Giannis Antetokounmpo released two farewell videos regarding the Bucks and the city of Milwaukee on Monday, the day he was officially dealt to the Heat.

“I want you to hear it from my mouth. The city of Milwaukee will always be in my heart,” Antetokounmpo said, per Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “This is my home and this is a place that I had my kids. My mom is here. My father is here. My brothers played here. It made me the man that I am today. That will never, ever change. No matter where I am, Milwaukee will always be my city, my team, my family.”

He hopes that he won’t be a villian to the Bucks fans after pushing for a trade.

“Hopefully, when people see me and think about me, they think about the things that I’ve done for the team and things that I’ve done for the city and how I’ve carried myself and how I grew in this city,” Antetokounmpo said. “And hopefully, they remember those moments (rather) than the things other people say about me.”

Antetokouonmpo believes he could finish his career back in Milwaukee, he told Bucks announcer Jim Paschke (video link).

“That would be awesome… if I can go and play, and maybe come back,” he said.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

• Most head coaches pick an assistant to run the Summer League team. However, new Bulls head coach Tiago Splitter chose to patrol the sidelines for the first two of his team’s games this month, Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune reports. “I want to set the tone on this first summer league camp,” Splitter said. “Especially having guys like (first-round picks) Caleb (Wilson) and Dailyn (Swain) that we drafted, they’re going to be important for this organization. So I want to just set the tone and work with the staff and get familiar with everybody.”
• Noa Essengue, the Bulls’ 2025 first-round pick, said that with his repaired shoulder he has to “learn how to play again,” Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic tweets. Essengue’s rookie season ended abruptly when he required surgery on his left shoulder in early December. He says he’s at about 98% and is still working through some range-of-motion issues. He’s unsure how many games he’ll play in the Vegas Summer League this month.
• Pacers point guard Braden Smith, selected with the No. 38 pick in last month’s draft, said that his 5’10” stature won’t hinder his career, he told Sam Yip of Hoops Hype. “I’ve always had confidence in myself to succeed in any spot or position I’ve been in,” he said. “Obviously, in the NBA you play with a lot of bigger people, but at the end of the day, it’s not all that. It is if you can play basketball, you understand things. It’s being able to make reads, make plays, and do other things other than just size. I think I’ve proven, obviously, at the college level, that that doesn’t matter. There’s ways that you can still compete and play without having to worry about size. Because at the end of the day, I think competing, that aspect gets overlooked, and it’s hard to measure, but for me, that’s where I succeed and prove.”