Giannis Antetokounmpo

The first battle between Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo and San Antonio Spurs rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama exceeded the hype.

Antetokounmpo had 44 points and 14 rebounds and Milwaukee overcame an electric performance by Wembanyama on his 20th birthday to beat San Antonio 125-121 on Thursday night.

Panathinaikos and Olympiakos finished their year with relatively easy Euroleague wins, as the Greens defeated visiting Red Star Belgrade on Thursday and the Reds overcame lowly Alba in Berlin on Friday.

Panathinaikos played in front of a capacity crowd at the Olympic Sports Hall and won 82-65 for its 10th victory in 17 games.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 26 points and 17 rebounds, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the Bucks' career rebounding leader, and Damian Lillard scored 39 points in Milwaukee's 128-119 victory over the Houston Rockets on Sunday night.

Giannis Antetokounmpo wanted to make sure his contract status didn't distract the Milwaukee Bucks as they made a run at another championship.

That's one reason the two-time MVP changed his mind and signed a three-year, $186 million extension rather than waiting until next summer to make his future plans known.

A fast start was all that USA Basketball needed to remain unbeaten as it keeps moving closer to the World Cup. Anthony Edwards scored 21 points, Cam Johnson added 13 and the US never trailed Friday in a 108-86 win over Greece in a World Cup tune-up game for both teams.

Giannis Antetokounmpo will not play for Greece at the Basketball World Cup that starts later this month, with the Milwaukee Bucks star saying Friday he and his medical advisers decided that he's simply not ready to compete.

Antetokounmpo had surgery on his left knee earlier this summer.

Forward Thanasis Antetokounmpo, the older brother of two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, is staying with the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Bucks announced Friday they have re-signed Antetokounmpo, who will be playing alongside his brother in Milwaukee for a fifth season.

Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo's status for the FIBA World Cup is uncertain following knee surgery, The Athletic reported Wednesday.

The World Cup runs from Aug. 25 to Sept. 10 in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia. Antetokounmpo and Greece are in Group C with the United States, Jordan and New Zealand.

Luka Dončić, the Slovenian basketball superstar, has been named to the All-NBA First Team for the fourth year running even as his Dallas Mavericks failed to appear in this year's NBA play-offs.

Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets made a statement on March 25, downing Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks 129-106 in a battle of NBA conference leaders.