Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo finally make franchise-altering trade decision

Billy Heyen

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Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo finally make franchise-altering trade decision image

The speculation may soon become reality.

Giannis Antetokounmpo's time with the Milwaukee Bucks appears to be heading to a trade conclusion that, for a while, wasn't clear it would ever come.

This is what ESPN's Shams Charania reported on Wednesday morning with a post on X:

"Two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo is ready for a new home at the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline or in the offseason as several rival teams make aggressive offers to the Milwaukee Bucks for him, and the franchise is starting to listen, league sources tell ESPN."

MORE: We now know what kind of basketball player ESPN's Shams Charania thinks he is

Reports like these have emerged before, but none worded quite like this.

Antetokounmpo made it clear earlier this season that he never planned to request a trade himself. But the wording, suggesting that Giannis "is ready for a new home," sounds like something pretty darn close to a trade request was put in.

This comes the morning after Bucks head coach Doc Rivers said that Joel Embiid was the best player he's ever coached. That may have nothing to do with the timing, but it certainly couldn't have helped.

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If Antetokounmpo indeed gets traded away, it'll be a heartbreaking day for Milwaukee sports fans.

They watched Giannis grow from a gangly teenager into an MVP and a guy who scored 50 points in a closeout game for the Bucks' first NBA championship in 50 years.

The Bucks have been knocked out in the first round of the playoffs each of the last three seasons, though, and they're trending to miss this postseason entirely, especially with Giannis out with a calf injury for the time being.

And so the end now appears as near as it has ever been for Antetokounmpo and the Bucks. At least in Milwaukee, it's a sad day.

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