Giannis Antetokounmpo is among the few players who have spent his entire career with the team that drafted him.
The Milwaukee Bucks showed trust in the Greek Freak with the 15th overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft. At the time, Antetokounmpo was a lanky athlete with no clear future in the league.
However, the Bucks allowed him to develop into the superstar he is today. One would assume that at this point in his career, Antetokounmpo would retire with the Bucks, right? But due to the organization’s failures in recent seasons, many trade rumors have surrounded the 2021 NBA champion.
For the majority of his career, Giannis has steered clear of unnecessary trade rumors. He caught himself in the rumor mill before leading the Bucks to the 2021 NBA championship, but since then, he has remained loyal to the franchise.
As of now, Giannis hasn’t demanded a trade, but he has dropped some concerning signs. Keeping that in mind, here’s a hypothetical 3-team trade that sends Antetokounmpo to the Houston Rockets, per Bleacher Report.
- Bucks receive: Reed Sheppard, Jabari Smith Jr., Amen Thompson, Wendell Moore Jr., 2027 first-round pick, 2028 first-round pick swap (Rockets), 2029 first-round pick, 2031 first-round pick (Rockets), $29.4 million trade exception (Antetokounmpo), $2.1 million trade exception (AJ Green)
- Rockets receive: Giannis Antetokounmpo, AJ Green, Chris Livingston, Delon Wright
- Pistons receive: Jeff Green, Jock Landale, MarJon Beauchamp, $7.24 million from Rockets, 2026 protected second-round pick (Rockets), 2026 second-round pick, 2026 second-round pick
Overall, it’s a hefty trade that involves three teams. If the Bucks pursue this hypothetical trade, they will likely trade away Damian Lillard as well. Thus, essentially entering into a rebuilding phase. On the other hand, the Rockets will instantly become an NBA championship contender in the Western Conference.
Lastly, the Detroit Pistons will fast-track their rebuilding process with valuable role players and future draft picks.
While the above-mentioned trade is perfectly viable, the NBA is always unpredictable. In fact, a new report has suggested that the 8x NBA All-Star is already unsettled and even has a couple of trade destinations in mind.
The report states that the Miami Heat or Brooklyn Nets are Giannis’ preferred teams to start the next chapter of his career. However, as of now, nothing is confirmed. After all, Antetokounmpo is yet to publicly demand a trade request.
At the time of writing, the Bucks have a terrible 1-3 record to start the season. The underwhelming record, coupled with an obvious lack of synergy in the team has sparked Antetokounmpo’s trade rumors.
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