Giannis Antetokounmpo might have played his final game for the Milwaukee Bucks, with a parting of ways on the cards this offseason. Antetokounmpo is reportedly open to leaving the Bucks, and that led to a fan asking Kevin Durant what he thought he was worth in a trade and if there would be an offer that can’t be turned down.
“Your 4 of your starting 5 and 6 picks lol.”
That package would be good enough to get any player in the NBA, provided the team offering it has a good starting five. As great as Antetokounmpo is, the Bucks are not getting that kind of haul, but they should get a pretty big one.
Antetokounmpo is undoubtedly a top-three player in the NBA today and is very much at the peak of his powers. The 30-year-old averaged 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 0.9 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game for the Bucks in 2024-25.
For all of Antetokounmpo’s heroics on the court, though, postseason success has eluded him lately. The Bucks have only won one playoff series since winning the title in 2021. That seems unbelievable, but it’s true. They have been knocked out in the first round in each of the last three postseasons.
Injuries have played a big role in that lack of success, but the Bucks have been somewhat of a flawed team the last two seasons as well. None of the moves the front office made really worked out, with the Damian Lillard trade being the most notable one.
The Bucks don’t have the assets to retool the roster around Antetokounmpo anymore, and the time is right to part ways. The question now is whether a team puts together a package that the Bucks find acceptable.
It’s hard to say what would be a reasonable package, as it’s not often that we see players of this caliber get traded. The Dallas Mavericks did trade Luka Doncic earlier this year, but that deal was done in secrecy, and there was no bidding war. There could be one here, which would help the Bucks.
As for which teams are in the best position to land Antetokounmpo, NBA insider Brian Windhorst pointed to the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs.
“Two things you have to know about the Bucks when you consider a trade. The Bucks do not control their first-round pick for five years. That means if the Bucks are gonna trade him, thinking that they’re going to tank for the next three years and rebuild, not gonna happen, they need quality players (in return).
And the other thing that you need to know is, if you’re gonna trade Giannis to a team that’s going to be a super team, getting that team’s draft assets is not exciting because they’re not going to be very high picks for the next few years. So you’re going to look at teams that have players to trade and other teams’ draft assets that they can trade beside theirs. San Antonio and Houston! San Antonio and Houston! San Antonio and Houston, pay attention there.”
Windhorst also added that the Brooklyn Nets and New Orleans Pelicans are in the mix as well. The Pelicans have the Bucks’ picks while the Nets have the Phoenix Suns‘ picks. They could help facilitate a deal or potentially even be the ones landing Antetokounmpo.
