The Bucks are off to a 1-5 start this season after falling to the Cavaliers at home on Saturday for their fifth straight loss, but the “league-wide lusting” for Giannis Antetokounmpo had begun even before Milwaukee stumbled out of the gate, Marc Stein writes in his latest Substack story.
As Stein explains, outside interest in Antetokounmpo – and optimism that he could eventually become available – stems from two key factors. The first is the Bucks’ salary cap and roster situation, since the club is operating over the second tax apron with an aging core and limited trade assets.
The second factor, Stein says, is an interview that Antetokounmpo gave to Tania Gaguli of The New York Times in August 2023. In that conversation, which took place before the Bucks acquired Damian Lillard, the star forward expressed a desire to remain in Milwaukee for the rest of his career only if he continues to believe the team is capable of winning another title.
While there has been no indication that Giannis has lost faith in the current iteration of the Bucks, the team isn’t in a great spot, coming off two straight first-round exits and having posted a sub-.500 regular season record (18-24) so far under head coach Doc Rivers. Things won’t get any easier on Monday night with another game against the Cavaliers on tap, this time in Cleveland, though Antetokounmpo was encouraged by what he saw as forward progress in Saturday’s one-point loss.
“I think we are headed towards the right direction,” he said, per Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Now, that doesn’t mean we’re going to go to a five-game winning streak or 10-game winning streak, but I know that we are playing better and we trust another.”
Here’s more on the struggling Bucks:
- In the event that Antetokounmpo becomes available via trade, a “credible” list of potential suitors would likely start with the Warriors, Heat, Nets, and Knicks, Stein states in his Substack story. While New York looks like a somewhat improbable suitor based on its current roster and draft assets, Stein says he’s heard “more than one rival team” wonder if having a star like Karl-Anthony Towns available to put in a future offer for Giannis was one of the reasons why the Knicks were willing to pull the trigger on that preseason deal with Minnesota. I’m a little skeptical that Towns is the sort of the player the Bucks would target if they ever seriously consider trading Antetokounmpo.
- The Bucks and MarJon Beauchamp‘s representatives at Klutch Sports are working together to try to find a new home for the third-year forward, league sources tell Stein. Beauchamp, the No. 24 pick in the 2022 draft, has yet to emerge as a rotation player and recently had his fourth-year option for 2025/26 option declined, putting him on track to become an unrestricted free agent in July 2025. As long as they continue to operate above the second apron, the Bucks wouldn’t be able to aggregate the 24-year-old’s salary ($2,733,720) with another player’s salary for matching purposes in a bigger deal.
- Beauchamp spoke to Owczarski of The Journal Sentinel on Saturday about his reaction to the Bucks declining his option. “I needed that to kind of put a fire under me,” he said. “So, I know who I am though and I know what (kind of) basketball player I am so I’m not really phased on that. I know that my work will always show and as long as I believe in myself, I’m not really worried about that. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise, you know? I’m still worried about right now and controlling what I can control.”
Bucks should trade Lillard not Giannis. Even if it means bringing back a bad contract and giving away draft picks. No way he is worth that much money.
They are such a veteran team they kind of have to roll with this all year.
There’s no way they can get anything of value for Lillard, just as you say, but I think the cost to get rid of him at this point would be astronomical.
The Bucks are sort of stuck with him until this summer perhaps and I would say the next season trading deadline 2026. His value is zero right now and actually negative.
He can still take over a game but he’s not the same player as in Portland obviously. He’ll go 2-11 a lot more often than he did in the past.
So being a veteran team, there’s like five guys you need to trade away and that is very, very tough to do at one time. Dealing only Lillard wouldn’t help much in the standings and it’s possible that he can still win a ball game for you in the playoffs. I believe you have to ride this out till next summer at the earliest.
I think you make a great point that Giannis is the last guy you trade away. Lopez, Damian lillard, middleton, couple other vets, go first. You trade Giannas first and you’ll get nothing in the fire sale for The Other Guys later.
The vultures will Circle and wait for the bargains. Not as likely to happen if you hold on to Giannis until the end.
Warriors need to watch what is happening with Bucks as a warning sign. Stop listening to the media telling you need to trade for a all star and use cap space to build a team. Don’t sign old players to long term deals.
Yes exactly. Just need to follow the OKC model. Draft picks and of course smart drafting. You can’t be the Warriors, Kings or Charlotte horrible drafts of years past.
The only old guys a team on the brink should sign are role players. A great rebounder or a great defender or a spot up shooter etc. Sort of like the Mavericks are doing with Klay. 17 million, a couple of years, make threes.
i look at OKC, Celtics, and Rockets being the league playoff teams for the next few years. Most of the other teams do not have money to keep going for a extended time.
OKC drafted in the lottery or better GSW drafted at like 30th theres a difference. You have to fully bottom out and go multi year rebuild to put together what OKC has and you couldnt do that with Steph the whole run.
True champ but I’m referring to the Chris Mullen era. Ike Diogu Patrick O’Bryant Juri Welsh Michael Pietrus Etc
Sorry Chapman, voice to text = champ lol. :(
Traded for Jrue and won a title. Just saying…
They dont have any tradable draft picks. Same reason NYK isnt getting him. I doubt he would ok a trade to the Nets either since they wont be good for a few years at least.
They need a taller SG that is a veteran who can play defense. Trent is a sixth man at best. Malik Beasley and Trent at SG the last two years is not good enough. One trade and two young players signed. Fire Doc and sign a veteran coach who played in the NBA or wait for Bud ( we are sorry to fire you after your brother died)
Gary and arc89 , I’m sure the rest of Hoopsrumors is wondering how this turned this into a Warriors thread, lol.
But, if Brook Lopez is available for the right price, can you think of a better C to platoon with TJD? Lopez guards big 5’s better than anyone in the game and stretches the floor. Perfect complement to JK. Fresno native, Stanford alum.
Lopez is a $23M expiring contract. If decision to rebuild happens early, he’s probably first to go. You can have him for two 2nd round picks and a bag of chips.
That would be nice. Lopez could be the big body they need against bigger teams.
It will take a lot more than that to pry away Brook Lopez.
He’s one of the best defensive centers in the game today and shoots the three very well. An expiring contract is also attractive because you’re not tied to him for multiple seasons.
He is a very, VERY appealing trade chip to many teams this season.
I don’t know … his defense has slipped recently and he’s not moving as well as he used to. Can’t tell if it’s because Dame is such a sieve at defense, causing the interior to breakdown a lot.
I guess it’s okay for a 1 year thing but I wouldn’t want to send out a lot of capital for Lopez.
Gary , he’s expiring this year, not next. Don’t expect a rebuilding Bucks to keep a 36 yr old UFA till the end of the season, esp since they’re deep into the tax.
Lopez is a “rental” for the acquiring team, only for this season. The price won’t be that high.
Only 2-3 teams have the matching expiring contracts to do this deal. Bucks would likely want:
1. Luxury tax relief by receiving less than the $23M salary they send out.
2. A promising young player. (Moody)
3. Draft capital. (2nds or heavily protected 1st)
4. Expiring contracts. (Payton, Melton, Looney)
5. A Center to replace Lopez (Looney)
Ok, good points guys !! I still think with his defense slipping and this being his contract year, it will still take a little more than we think to get him.
Any team hoping for a title run would love to have him. If they don’t have picks they’ve got young guys plus that one expiring matching guy.
Kuminga, Podziemski, Wiggins, Santos and 2 firsts for Giannis and change in a multi-teamer, do it yesterday MDJ
Jackson-Davis instead of Santos*
The Bucks will trade all their other veterans before Giannis. It’s just how it works. Otherwise they’re held over a barrel with all their other guys, AND they’ll be crappy.
You trade the other guys first one by one and you might get something for them.., aside from Damian Lillard. You’re stuck with Lillard, so really the Bucks won’t trade anyone now and go for it one last time this season.
They’ll stand Pat until the summer. They might even add a guy if they think it will help them in the playoffs.
Not nearly enough
In this hypothetical no one will be able to outbid OKC anyways.
Yeah, OKC not only has a big movable contract in Hartenstein and tons of draft capital, but also a bunch of interesting young guys like Nikola Topic, Cason Wallace, Ousmane Dieng, and Ajay Mitchell. Utah is the closest, but they’re too far away from contention to actually make good use of a Giannis trade.
benjivan , OKC has draft picks, but they won’t pursue ANY free agent superstar for reasons Presti mentioned this summer: they have to pay their existing players, which includes max rookie extensions to Chet and JWilliams
2 years from now, OKC is expected to be paying ~ $220M to only 5 players.
SGA $65M
Chet: $50M
Williams: $50M
Hartenstein: $30M
Caruso: $30M
MIL probably couldn’t get a player of KAT’S caliber… when you trade a megastar you will always lose!
KAT wouldn’t be a landslide loss, so no KAT for MIL, right?
I can’t imagine Giannis being traded in-season, even if he requests it (which I doubt he would). MIL will want a full slate of bidders (if only as cover for the FO), and that will require the flexibility that only the off season can provide. IMO, the trade price will exceed what’s been seen to date, and it won’t be strictly in future draft picks and role players. But will, at a minimum, need to set MIL up in the coming drafts (currently, they don’t control their own picks until 2031). No FO is trading a generational talent like Giannis, to then be looking at 6 years where they’re unlikely to be participating at the top of the draft.
DXC, I agree with you that MIL’s strongest disincentive to trading Giannis is that an absence of draft capital prohibits a rebuild.
However, history (see ADavis to the Lakers) suggests a Giannis trade could replenish the full complement of future draft picks and a winning young core in one fell swoop. One team could provide, say, 3 FRP’s, 3 years of swaps, and 3 high quality young players.
For Anthony Davis, worth less than Giannis, NOLA got 2 FRP’s plus almost of all the Lakers young core: Ingram, Hart, Lonzo Ball, and De’andre Hunter (flipped for CJ McCollum).
6 games in