Giannis Trade Rumors: ‘Watching’ Bucks Star Ahead of Free Agency, Knicks, ‘Whole’ NBA
Teams are allegedly keeping an eye on Giannis Antetokounmpo’s status with the Milwaukee Bucks following the team’s second consecutive first-round elimination.
It’s evident that the entire league is keeping an eye on Giannis’s situation. The Knicks are undoubtedly one of them.
With the Bucks, Antetokounmpo inked a three-year, $175.9 million contract extension in October of last year. The deal keeps him under contract through at least the 2026–2027 campaign.
Antetokounmpo has not indicated that he wants to leave Milwaukee, so the Bucks would only even consider moving him if he requested a trade. Windhorst claimed just two weeks ago that there were “no rumbles” regarding Antetokounmpo’s desire to leave Milwaukee.
Essentially, this could not be a course correction but rather a lofty aspiration from all over the league.
Damian Lillard was acquired by the Bucks past offseason, making Antetokounmpo’s teammate the best of his career. When it came to figuring out how to divide the offensive load, Lillard and Antetokounmpo were a bad combination, and Milwaukee struggled after Doc Rivers took over as coach in place of Adrian Griffin.
Due to a calf injury that prevented him from playing during the Bucks’ first-round series loss to the Indiana Pacers, the team was unable to see how their superstar duo would perform together in the postseason. Lillard missed two of the series’ games as well.
For the Bucks executive staff to not monitor Antetokounmpo and Lillard’s play and make necessary adjustments to their supporting cast would be tantamount to malpractice. Unless Antetokounmpo has an unexpected change of heart, Bucks fans won’t have to worry about him asking for a move before at least the summer of 2025.
READ ON:
Using Clutch Points’ new trade targets for the Milwaukee Bucks, play pass or pursue
Although the Milwaukee Bucks won’t be able to make trades or other significant decisions for some time, it’s never too early to begin compiling a wish list.
The Bucks will have no shortage of targets to ask about as they look to revamp the squad, particularly in the case of powerful defenders. It’s time to determine if the organization should pass on or pursue the three trade targets who lately match that specific profile for the Bucks, as highlighted by writer Liam Hanley of Clutch Points.
First on the Bucks’ list is Matisse Thybulle.
This writer was among the many Milwaukee Bucks supporters who were pounding the table last season for Matisse Thybulle as a trade target.
The young player satisfied many of the Bucks’ requirements by providing youth, a contract that was reasonable at $11 million, and—perhaps most importantly—versatile perimeter defense. Making a run at the wing this off-season shouldn’t be completely out of the question because Milwaukee still needs all of those.
Thybulle has never been one to pad the stat sheet, even though his numbers from this past season—5.4 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game—do not exactly pop off the page. He’s making his imprint on that side of the ball, having been named an All-Defensive selection twice. Milwaukee requires that.
Their inability to hit the long ball with consistency (33.8 percent in his career) may cause fit issues when he plays next to Giannis Antetokounmpo, but ultimately, they might be prepared to give up some floor spacing in exchange for an exceptionally adaptable defender.
In the end, it appears that the Portland Trail Blazers never even considered bids for the rookie wing. It would be unusual if they did so again in the off-season, but the Bucks should still at least make an inquiry. The Bucks should make a pitch if the Blazers will listen.
