When it comes to the NBA and basketball overseas, pretty much all of the NBA teams would rather have none of their players playing for their country in the summer. This is especially prevalent when the person in question is not American.
If they’re American the NBA teams don’t mind as much because the US win the competition most of the time and it seems worth the risk of playing World Class basketball for another couple of months. But if you’re Greek like Giannis Antetokounmpo, his NBA team, this case the Milwaukee Bucks, will be wondering “Why do you want to play more basketball and most likely not win the tournament?”.
When the players are international, NBA teams question why put yourself through it. Giannis Antetokounmpo wants to play for Greece this summer, but he knows that the decision will need some sort of approval from Milwaukee.
Giannis also explained his situation, concerning the Bucks: “I want to play for the national team. The Bucks know it. We have not talked yet for this matter. Even if they are negative, I would try to convince them to let me play”.
Honestly, I don’t think the Bucks or any NBA team should have a say.
Playing for your country is different to playing for your professional team. If they want to do it, they should do it. You can advise them not to but the decision should ultimately be in the players hands.
