The Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes are officially here.
ESPN's Shams Charania reported on Wednesday that two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo is "ready for a new home" with the Bucks listening to offers ahead of the February 5 trade deadline.
As you might imagine, it didn't take long for the rumor mill and NBA content machine to crank into hyper drive with seemingly half the league mentioned as a possible suitor. The Heat, Timberwolves, Hawks, Knicks, 76ers, Rockets, Nets and several others have all been most prominently linked to the 31-year-old future Hall of Famer. They all might be tough-pressed to match the Warriors if Mike Dunleavy Jr. Puts Golden State's best foot forward.
That the Warriors are interested in Antetokounmpo should come as no surprise.
With Jimmy Butler's season-ending torn ACL, Jonathan Kuminga's trade demand, Draymond Green's unwavering commitment to drama-inducing behavior, Steve Kerr's future beyond this season in doubt and Stephen Curry's open frustration with the state of the organization, Golden State's short- and long-term prospects are hanging perilously in the balance.
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On its own merit, pushing the chips in for Antetokounmpo would be a seismic move unto itself.
But what if the Warriors dared to dream even bigger? What if Golden State decided that acquiring the Greek Freak wasn't enough to vault back into contention? What if Joe Lacob decided to go for broke and also make a play for LeBron James?
Imagine the thought of a Curry-James pick and roll with Giannis waiting in the dunker spot. You'd watch, I'd watch and the those three on the same team would instantly command the respect of every other title contender... Regardless of what Curry himself thinks of a potential trade.
The math works and neither the restrictive aprons nor salary caps would get in the way.
Here is a hypothetical (REPEAT: HYPOTHETICAL) three-team trade that works.
(Editor's note: Fanspo's NBA trade machine is by far the best one out there with updated picks, salaries, restrictions and specific conditional feedback on why trades do or don't work).
Fanspo.com
Proposed Warriors 3-team trade details with Bucks and Lakers
- Warriors get: Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, Thanasis Antetokounmpo
- Lakers get: Draymond Green, Myles Turner, Will Richard
- Bucks get: 4 future first-round picks, 3 pick swaps, Jimmy Butler, Jonathan Kuminga, Brandin Podziemski, Quentin Post
Why the Bucks say yes:
Milwaukee badly needs to restock its draft capital if its going to enter a full rebuild. And of the teams potentially in the market for Giannis, only the Nets can rival Golden State's war chest of future picks.
The Warriors can offer up to four first-round picks along with three additional swaps. Only three are listed above as the Warriors have a top-20 protected 2030 pick owed to Washington (if that pick falls between 1-20, in this scenario it would go to Milwaukee).
The Bucks would be hedging against the Warriors' long-term future with picks out as far as 2032 when Curry would be 43, Antetokounmpo 37 and James well into retirement.
Butler would presumably be trade bait for next season on an expiring contract, potentially fetching additional draft compensation though his $56.8 million salary would be difficult to move. Kuminga presents an interesting low-risk upside play while this trade also allows them to move off a sizeable and lengthy commitment to Myles Turner.
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Why the Warriors say yes:
If the Warriors stand pat, its a signal they are content to ride out Curry's career as a middling fringe playoff or play-in team.
Moving out the picks for Antetokounmpo immediately extends Golden State's window. Such is the reality when you have two of the NBA's top seven players on your roster.
The LeBron James piece of the equation is where things get really interesting. That bloated $52.6 salary complicates the money going out and Golden State's most realistic path towards getting James after sending out the money required to bring back Antetokounmpo is to include Draymond Green.
The Warriors could, instead of Green, cobble enough salary to send the Lakers between Buddy Hield, Al Horford and Moses Moody but doing some would strip what little depth remains in the first place. While breaking up the Curry-Green pairing would hurt, its also difficult to imagine Green fitting in at all offensively with Curry, Antetokounmpo AND James.
That Curry-Green chemistry can't be replicated but if there's one player on the planet with the IQ to pull off a reasonably proxy overnight, its James. Golden State would probably want some assurances that James would come back for at least one more full season, but even if he doesn't, there's not much tread left on Green's tires either.
Beyond the basketball fit, one also wonders if its simply time. If Kerr and the organization at large is simply worn down and ready to move on, perhaps swapping out Green for James may inject some energy back into Steve Kerr.
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Why the Lakers say yes:
There's a growing sense of frustration within the Lakers and that was before ESPN's bombshell about the Buss family and potential turbulence with the James relationship.
In this scenario, the Lakers functionally swap James for Turner and Green in a frontcourt overhaul. Both Turner and Green offer significant upgrades defensively, Turner offers some stretchiness from the 5 to open things up for Luka Doncic and Green would surely be motivated to play with an Everest-sized chip on his shoulder.
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Turner is under contract for three more seasons with the third a player option while Green owns a player option for next season. Moving James now, even for players with longer commitments, also means they won't have the discount haggling sure to happen this season with James and agent Rich Paul. There are already reports that the Lakers would ask James to take a significant discount, something he's in the past shown no willingness to consider.
If the Lakers did say yes, it probably also means finding a taker for Deandre Ayton who has an $8 million player option for next year but will surely opt out. If the Lakers could turn Ayton into another shooter, they would fully hand the on-ball keys to Doncic and Austin Reaves with more complementary pieces around the fringes.
Is that more exciting than having LeBron James? Absolutely not. But it does give JJ Redick more outs and roster flexibility.
There's a million reasons trades like this never happen. It's a massive reset involving three teams with onerous contracts, bloated egos, luxury tax and apron implications and so much more.
Will this happen? Almost assuredly not.
Can it happen? Anything is impossible!