The biggest domino to fall for the Milwaukee Bucks is obviously Giannis Antetokounmpo. The reports suggested that the trade was expected to be finalized before the 2026 NBA Draft. With only two weeks left until the draft, however, nothing has materialized so far.
Sooner or later, however, there will be an Antetokounmpo trade. At this point, there is too much smoke, and it makes very little sense for either side to stay in the relationship.
Whenever the trade is first announced, there will be disappointment among Bucks fans. This will be understandable. However, it's important for the fanbase to temper expectations. The return package for Giannis may not be as generous as some of the mock trade scenarios suggest on social media.
Bucks fans should be ready for disappointment in the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade package
For example, a popular trade machine scenario involves a Chet Holmgren-for-Giannis swap. Getting that type of young star who has already made an All-NBA team is more of a pipe dream. NBA insider Jake Fischer recently reported that the Thunder have no interest in trading for Holmgren.
And they would be right to be hesitant to trade Holmgren for Giannis. The Greek Freak is not nearly as indestructible as he once was. He is going to turn 32 during the season, and he has dealt with significant injuries over the last couple of years. He was only healthy in one postseason over the last four years.
Any team willing to trade for Giannis has to give him a lucrative, multi-year contract extension. This will pay him over $60 million per year as he approaches his mid-30s. This is a difficult financial calculation and a sacrifice these teams have to make.
Then there is the issue of on-court fit. Antetokounmpo is not a plug-and-play superstar. Due to his shooting deficiency, he requires as much spacing around him as possible. Not every team has that type of roster. A team that is already a title contender, like the Thunder, isn't going to be too interested in overhauling their entire team to accommodate Giannis.
Finding a landing spot that Antetokounmpo is interested in that can give the Bucks what they are looking for in a trade is not as easy as it sounds. The acquiring team would have to be a contender with Antetokounmpo's arrival.
This means that they won't be willing to part ways with their good players since they are trying to contend. Their first-round picks will also presumably not be very valuable once they trade for Antetokounmpo.
Obviously, all it takes is one team to want to go all-in on Antetokounmpo. At the same time, it's hard to see a bidding war where the price gets driven up to an All-NBA caliber player or a young All-Star plus a team's entire future draft capital.
This shouldn't deter the Bucks from trading their superstar. This could be as high as Antetokounmpo's trade value will ever get. At this point, they have no choice but to take the best offer available and finally kickstart their rebuild.
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