Laying out a trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo
The Milwaukee Bucks made the right series of moves around their superstar forward in 2021, adding Jrue Holiday and PJ Tucker and giving Giannis Antetokounmpo what he needed to win the 2021 NBA Championship.
Since that point, however, the Bucks have made a series of questionable or half-hearted moves to maintain the roster around Giannis. Donte DiVincenzo was ejected for spare parts, Jae Crowder was a key target who bombed after arrival, and the Bucks made a big swing to swap Jrue Holiday and Grayson Allen for Damian Lillard, only to see Dame have a mediocre season and Holiday and Allen thrive in their new locales. Add in the disaster of Adrian Griffin’s tenure as head coach earlier this season, and it would not be surprising if Antetokounmpo concluded he wouldn’t be able to win another title in Milwaukee.
If Giannis were to demand a trade, what would a competitive offer from the Golden State Warriors look like? They would need to outbid other teams while not giving up the pieces they need to continue contending. Given Antetokounmpo’s $48.7 million salary for next season, they would also need to get under the second luxury tax apron to aggregate multiple players in the trade.
Here is one version of a trade:
Depending on the other moves for both the Bucks and Warriors this offseason salary filler may need to be added, but this is the core of a deal. The Warriors get their MVP candidate, while the Bucks get their power forward of the future in Jonathan Kuminga as well as two unprotected firsts and two unprotected swaps.
Would this be enough for Milwaukee? It largely comes down to what they think of Jonathan Kuminga. His combination of athleticism and power could be appealing as a piece to build around if the Bucks look to move into a different phase of their franchise. If they instead try to stay competitive, retaining Damian Lillard and Khris Middleton, then Kuminga is ready to contribute now and both Andrew Wiggins and Milwaukee-native Kevon Looney are championship role players able to step into a playoff rotation.
If Kuminga is viewed as a future All-Star by the Bucks, similar to how the Toronto Raptors viewed Immanuel Quickley when he was the centerpiece of the OG Anunoby deal this past season, the Warriors’ deal could bump up the list of potential offers. The upside of controlling four-straight drafts, largely after Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are likely to retire, would likely be very appealing to the Bucks as well.
The Warriors may need to include Brandin Podziemski or Trayce Jackson-Davis to get this deal over the finish line, but they would obviously prefer to keep both to give them the ongoing support around Curry and Antetokounmpo.
If Milwaukee would accept this deal, should the Warriors pull the trigger?
