The Cleveland Cavaliers have been one of the many teams linked to the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade sweepstakes this summer, as the Milwaukee Bucks are expected to trade the 31-year-old former two-time MVP this summer. With reports saying there’s a 0% chance Antetokounmpo stays in Milwaukee, there have been discussions on whether the Cavaliers could be a destination for him.
The Bucks were reportedly interested in discussing a swap for Giannis with Evan Mobley and all their remaining first-round picks, but the Cavaliers rebuffed those talks. After the team was swept in the Eastern Conference Finals by the New York Knicks, a lot of speculation emerged that the Cavs might re-engage with the Bucks on a Mobley for Antetokounmpo swap. However, that seems unlikely.
Marc Stein has reported that the Cavaliers are not expected to pursue Giannis this summer for two major reasons. First, they don’t want to give up on Mobley. Second, they’re skeptical of Antetokounmpo signing a long-term extension to stay with the franchise and not test free agency in 2028.
“The skepticism alone about whether Antetokounmpo would want to extend in Cleveland… is one significant factor working against a swap headlined by Mobley heading to Milwaukee.”
Cavaliers President Koby Altman gave his first public remarks since the team’s playoff exit shortly after Stein’s report, where he reiterated the franchise’s commitment to Mobley, hailing him as a franchise-caliber player while praising him as the first one of his peers, like Cade Cunningham and Scottie Barnes, to make a Playoff run this deep.
“I’m not going to speculate on any players outside these walls,” Altman said in his first public comments after the Cavs were swept out of the Eastern Conference finals by the New York Knicks. “All I can tell you is, since Evan’s been here, we’ve had the third-best record in the league for five years. Now, we don’t have a championship to show for that yet, right? Boston and Denver, the other two ahead of us, have a championship to show for that, but all Evan has done is impact winning. He’s been remarkable for us in terms of our ascent over the last five years. He’s a huge part of what we do.”
“Out of those guys, who’s the first to the conference finals? Evan Mobley. We have to be proud of that. We have to take pride in that. It’s easy to knock someone down. … He’s a franchise-caliber player, and we’re very fortunate to have him.”
Mobley averaged 18.2 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks in the regular season and 17.0 points, 8.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.8 blocks in the Playoffs. The 24-year-old is a perennial DPOY finalist, so it doesn’t look like the Cavaliers are ready to give up on his offensive upside just yet. He needs to elevate his game to be a real No. 2 option for the franchise if they want to compete for a title.
The Cavaliers are still expected to be in the race for LeBron James in free agency, but there is skepticism around James’ willingness to accept a veteran’s minimum to return to Cleveland. With Altman making it clear that neither Mobley nor Donovan Mitchell will be traded, and James Harden is expected to re-sign on a contract for around $30 million annually, the Cavs likely won’t be able to make space for LeBron.
Plenty of other suitors are still expected to surround Antetokounmpo, with recent rumors linking him to teams like the Boston Celtics and Minnesota Timberwolves. Things can change in an instant in the NBA offseason, so we’ll have to keep watching to see what the Cavaliers do to take a step forward and where Antetokounmpo might end up.
