Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslem made it clear: He wants the future of Giannis Antetokounmpo with the Bucks decided by the June 23 NBA Draft. A date now less than a month away. It makes sense, a number of teams that might throw their 2026 first-round pick in the mix (Heat, Lakers, others) want to know, too.
Where do things stand now? Here are some of the latest reports and news around Antetokounmpo and a possible trade.
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Is market for Antetokounmpo tepid?
At February’s trade deadline, Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst gauged the market for an Antetokounmpo trade but, as league sources told NBC Sports, he didn’t appear serious about making a deal. Now, as we are less than a month out from the NBA Draft, the Bucks are “open for business” and more seriously considering trade offers for the two-time MVP.
Did the Bucks make a mistake waiting? More and more, the buzz in league circles is that, while the Bucks are serious, the market for Antetokounmpo is much more tepid. The thought was the summer market would be better with more teams and better offers in the mix, but that appears not to be the case. For example, the Knicks were considered potential suitors, but they are on the verge of making the NBA Finals for the first time this century, they are not going to blow up what they have for Antetokounmpo.
The Ringer’s Zach Lowe put it this way a couple of weeks ago on his podcast:
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“I had breakfast with an agent, a very high-powered agent the other day, and he was like, ‘I’m still betting no trade.’ And I said really? And he said, ‘Just go through the exercise. Who has enough stuff and would be good enough with Giannis Antetokounmpo to contend right away?'”
Antetokounmpo wants to stay in the East and contend, but what option gives him that? (Keep reading for more talk about those teams.) If nothing appealing to him on the table, does he just take the larger check that the Bucks can offer (four years, $275 million) and call it a day?
League sources NBC Sports spoke with still expect Antetokounmpo to be traded this offseason, but maybe that is not as certain as it once seemed.
Cavaliers not interested in Mobley trade
Cleveland is getting its head handed to it by the Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals (the Cavaliers are down 0-3 as of this writing) and realizes it needs to make changes this offseason if they want to compete at the top of the East next season with New York, a healthy Boston, a healthy Indiana and others.
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Milwaukee wants a blue-chip young player and multiple first-round picks in return for any Antetokounmpo trade, but the problem is the only player who fits that bill in Cleveland is Evan Mobley, and Joe Varden writes at The Athletic that the former Defensive Player of the Year is not likely to be moved.
Otherwise, you’re looking at something drastic like trading Evan Mobley for Giannis Antetokounmpo — though two league sources say Cleveland has shown no interest in that move as of now.
Don’t bet on that changing. Cleveland will extend Donovan Mitchell and James Harden this offseason (some kind of Harden extension had to be agreed to before he was traded there, or the deal would not have happened), and trading 24-year-old Mobley for a 31-year-old Antetokounmpo with an injury history is just not a smart trade.
Boston may not be interested, either
The team at the heart of Antetokounmpo trade chatter in recent weeks was the Boston Celtics, after they were bounced in the first round of the East playoffs. What was clear is that the Celtics need to put more pressure on the rim, and nobody puts pressure on the rim like Antetokounmpo. The idea would be a Jaylen Brown for Antetokounmpo trade (because people will forever want to split up Brown and Jayson Tatum, even though they won a title together).
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Boston may not be as interested as everyone thinks, something Bill Simmons said on his podcast recently.
“I think Giannis wants to go to Boston, and I’m not sure Boston wants Giannis. I think that’s the push and pull right now. I think he wants to stay in the East. I think a certain guy on the Celtics has the same shooting coach as him. I think there’s a lot of respect for the organization. I just think that would be a team he would be interested in.”‘
Boston won a title two years ago, but knowing that Tatum would be out for much of the coming season, the Celtics made a number of cost-cutting moves heading into this season, trading away their entire front line (Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, Luke Kornet) plus guard Jrue Holiday. While Neemias Queta stepped up and proved he could take on a larger role and be a solid center on a playoff team, Boston knows it is a few roster moves away from contending again. But moves it can make without blowing everything up.
Does adding Antetokounmpo to a team known for spacing the floor with 3-point shooting everywhere make sense? Is that the direction Boston wants to go, or does it just need some front-line help and a more traditional guard? Trading for Antetokounmpo is a big change, maybe one Boston does not want to take.
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Miami still interested
The team at the front of the line to land Antetokounmpo remains the Miami Heat. They are interested, and can put together a trade package centered around Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, three first-round picks, including the 13th pick in this draft (Miami has to make the pick, then trade the player after the draft), and they can throw in the swap rights for other years.
Miami, just like Bucks’ owner Haslem, is on a “before the draft” timeline with this trade, long-time Heat reporter Ira Winderman writes at the Sun Sentinel.
“Basically, it will be up to the Heat to either blow away the Bucks with an offer, or to turn to alternative plans… The problem would be the Heat then losing the option of utilizing the No. 13 pick next month to select for the Bucks. What the Heat can’t afford is to draft a player they believe the Bucks eventually would want, only to see the Bucks move on to an alternative trade package elsewhere down the road. In other words, no repeat of selecting Shabazz Napier in the 2014 first round to appease LeBron James, only to have LeBron walk in free agency weeks later.”
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The main alternative plan is to wait until the summer of 2027, when the Heat could create a lot of cap space and go after potential free agents.
One way or another, we are a month out from a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade, or teams are going to pull out, and the two-time MVP likely takes the money to stay where he is. Something he has done every other time he’s been in this situation before.
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