7 Giannis Antetokounmpo trade ideas after Bucks star asks out

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Here are 7 potential offers for Giannis after he asked out of Milwaukee.

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The Milwaukee Bucks have had to deal with Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors for years, but every time he’s returned to the team and played at an MVP level. Finally, it sounds like Antetokounmpo is ready for a change of scenery: the superstar and his agent have started conversations with the Bucks about “whether his best fit is staying or elsewhere,” according to ESPN insider Shams Charania. A resolution in expected in the coming weeks.

This is Giannis asking out, and he’s going to be traded soon. The Bucks are 9-13 on the season after a 4-1 start, and most recently gave the tanking Washington Wizards their third win of the season on Monday night. Losing to the Wizards really pushed Giannis over the edge, and now he’s talking to the front office about where he’s going next.

This is devastating news for Bucks fans, but it’s also smart for the organization to trade him now. The Bucks could actually have a very high pick in a loaded 2026 NBA Draft this year as the owners of the least favorite pick between themselves and the New Orleans Pelicans. With the Pelicans looking terrible and the Bucks potentially tanking post-Giannis trade, Milwaukee could have good odds to pick potentially as high as No. 2 overall.

Antetokounmpo has been excellent once again this season when healthy. He’s averaging 30.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 6.4 assists per game on amazing 66.8 percent true shooting. He’s about to turn 31 years old, and he’s under contract next season for $58.4 million and then has a $62.7 million player option for the 2027-28 season.

Where could Giannis end up? Here are a few options.

San Antonio Spurs

This trade would work by Feb. 4, two days before the trade deadline, because it would mark six months since Fox’s extension. The Spurs really should feel no pressure to do a trade like this because the team was looking really good before Victor Wembanyama exited the lineup with a calf injury. The rest of this team is young and on Wemby’s timeline, and it was be extremely bold to push all the chips in for a championship push while Wemby is only 21 years old. Still, a Giannis-Wemby pairing could be terrifying for the next few years and put the Spurs in position to push the Thunder for championships.

Houston Rockets

A Rockets trade is going to be really complicated if it involves Jabari Smith Jr’s poison pill contract, but something like this could work in broad strokes. Amen Thompson might be the best possible young player Milwaukee could bring back in a Giannis deal, and he remains a wonderful long-term prospect despite an uneven third season. I could see the Rockets including one of Jabari Smith Jr. or Reed Sheppard with a bunch of tantalizing future draft picks. A Giannis trade makes more sense for Houston’s timeline now that they have Kevin Durant, and a Giannis-KD-Alperen Sengun front line would be fantastic. The Rockets feel like one of the five most likely champions this season right now, and getting Giannis would certainly increase their odds.

Toronto Raptors

The Raptors are the surprise team of the East so far, and it’s early enough in the season that they can talk themselves into making an Eastern Conference title run even before doing a Giannis trade. I didn’t think this Toronto team would be pacing at the No. 2 seed in the East, so I don’t want to put a ceiling on what they could potentially accomplish right now. If the Raptors feel like they’re a long-shot, though, making a bold move for Giannis would give them the best player in the conference in a dilapidated field. For as much as I love Collin Murray-Boyles, the players coming back to Milwaukee here aren’t as enticing as Amen Thompson or Stephon Castle. That means there would probably have to be more picks in the deal, and just for kicks I included all four that Toronto could trade here. Milwaukee could probably also flip Ingram and Barrett for future draft capital. Toronto won a championship in 2019 with a similarly bold trade for Kawhi Leonard, though that one only cost them a single first-round pick. Giannis in Toronto would be must-see TV if he bought in.

Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers can only trade one distant first-round pick right now, and they don’t have much to offer in terms of tradable assets outside of Austin Reaves. This probably only happens if Giannis says he’s playing for the Lakers and no one else. Still, the Lakers just find a way to land superstar players in every generation of the franchise, so it makes sense to include them on any list.

New York Knicks

Giannis basically said he wanted to be with the Knicks this summer when Milwaukee and New York engaged in an exclusive negotiating window but couldn’t agree to a deal. The Knicks already traded a Giannis level package for Mikal Bridges, from what I can tell, can’t really trade a first-round pick outside of the top-8 protected 2026 Wizards pick they own which will eventually convey into two seconds. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported that Giannis will pick his destination, and that puts the Knicks in the spotlight once again. Maybe there’s a three-team version of a deal here with Mikal Bridges goes to a third team and picks go back to the Bucks. Towns and Anunoby would serve no purpose on a tanking Bucks team, but they could be flipped for nice trade returns over the summer. We know Giannis wants the Knicks. Do the Knicks want Giannis? Would the Bucks actually send him there?

Miami Heat

The Heat are a big surprise in the East this season, looking like a potential home court advantage playoff team even with Tyler Herro just returning to the lineup. Pat Riley is always superstar hunting, and Giannis is as big as it gets. I love Ware and even I think this isn’t a very good package for the Bucks, but the money would work out after Jan. 15. They can also do a version of this trade with Andrew Wiggins, but I’m not sure that’s any better for them. Landing Giannis would be the ultimate swan song for Riley, and put Miami in position to potentially win the East right now.

Atlanta Hawks

This is the trade the Bucks should be hunting, one that would give them a second crack at an elite prospect in the 2026 NBA Draft and a very good asset for the 2027 draft. The Hawks are cruising right now behind Jalen Johnson without Trae Young out, and this is a deal that could have them dreaming about winning the East right now. There’s a strong argument that Atlanta should be slow roll it, take its chances with New Orleans in the lottery, and try to land one of Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer, or AJ Dybantsa themselves instead of setting Milwaukee up with one of them. If the Bucks are controlling the situation, they should be pressing Atlanta before any other team.

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