Stephen A. Smith: Knicks 'don't have draft capital' to trade for Giannis

Stephen A. Smith: Knicks 'don't have draft capital' to trade for Giannis originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It was just one summer ago that the New York Knicks traded five first-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets for Mikal Bridges.

Bridges became an essential piece of the Knicks' starting lineup, but ESPN's Stephen A.Smith thinks New York's trade for Bridges cost them an opportunity to land Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.

"They traded five first-round picks for him," Smith said about Bridges on an episode of "Joe and Jada" hosted by rappers Fat Joe and Jadakiss. "If they had paid three first-round picks and they had kept two of them for themselves, they'd have had Giannis. They had nothing to give them. You got those players, but you had no draft assets. That's what Milwaukee got to get."

ESPN's Shams Charania reported at the beginning of the 2025-26 NBA season that "conversations were happening" between the Knicks and Bucks that could have seen Antetokounmpo join forces with Jalen Brunson.

The Knicks would look a lot different with Giannis

It's entertaining to visualize what Antetokounmpo, a two-time MVP, would look like in the orange and blue and playing alongside Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns.

But without the necessary draft picks, the Knicks would be forced to trade from their starting lineup and other impact players to acquire the nine-time All-Star. The Bucks' asking price would undoubtedly be high for their franchise player.

“If you lose Giannis, it can’t be just a couple of players. It’s got to be pack draft picks. You don’t have draft capital," Smith added. "So now the only way you can get him is if he forces his way out of Milwaukee, and he’s not willing to do that yet because he feels he owes the organization and the city."

Antetokounmpo is questionable for Friday night's Emirates NBA Cup game at Madison Square Garden against the Knicks. He last played last Monday, missing the previous four games with a thigh injury.

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