The Milwaukee Bucks were eliminated from the first round of the NBA Playoffs for the third time in a row after they lost to the Pacers in five games. Following this exit, ESPN published a report claiming Giannis Antetokounmpo, for the first time in his career, is open to potentially considering leaving Milwaukee and requesting a trade from the Bucks.
This made the two-time MVP one of the biggest names to watch out for in the trade market once the offseason begins. Shaquille O’Neal spoke to Yahoo Sports about this potential trade move. He gave his advice to the Greek superstar about embracing the small market team because a small market is an outdated concept in the NBA, and social media has made every team a potentially big market for the players.
“I would tell him that, probably, throwing in his face in a bigger market doesn’t matter. Social media is the market now. Giannis has made a name for himself on social media. You got to LA, and now 50% of your contract goes to taxes, more pressure, and more stress. Being that he’s in control of that ship, he should go upstairs and be like, ‘I want to see all the free agents, I want all the phone numbers, I’ll talk to them.’ He should bring people to him.”
O’Neal feels Antetokounmpo should use his position on the team to demand more from the front office and become actively involved in recruiting talent to the team. O’Neal has had personal experience with moving from a small-market team to a big-market team when he moved from the Orlando Magic to the LA Lakers. However, he claims that times were different back in his day and that Antetokounmpo should not make himself go through that process.
“You know, when I was coming up, it was a small market, it’s too small, you probably need to go to a big market, I took the pain through that. But now every market is the same. Nobody cares what city you’re in anymore, this ain’t the 90s.”
Where Giannis Antetokounmpo May End Up: Rumors And Best Fit
According to immediate predictions from NBA Insider Brian Windhorst after ESPN reports on Antetokounmpo’s potential request, the Houston Rockets and the San Antonio Spurs are in the best positions to make a move for Antetokounmpo. Considering that the main reason why Giannis is expected to leave is a lack of success, he is predicted to immediately join a team that becomes a title contender.
The San Antonio Spurs have the highly rated Victor Wembanyama and Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle alongside veteran talent of De’Aaron Fox and Devin Vassell. They will immediately become title contenders if they find a way to retain this core and trade for Antetokounmpo.
The Houston Rockets were the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference due to top-tier talents like Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson, and Jalen Green. That, combined with Ime Udoka’s coaching, makes the Rockets a viable destination for Antetokounmpo. The Rockets have a lot of draft assets and young talent to potentially sign off on a trade without giving away this young core.
Two team names that also came up in this discussion were the Warriors and the Knicks, simply because they are big markets. Considering that neither of these teams has enticing draft assets or young talent for the Bucks to give away their franchise player, it is highly unlikely that Antetokounmpo lands in either of these teams. In the most recent rumors, Toronto Star’s NBA Insider Doug Smith claimed Antetokounmpo has interest in joining the Raptors.
It will be interesting to see where Antetokounmpo lands if he requests a trade or if he listens to O’Neal, stays in Milwaukee, and fixes things internally in the franchise.
