Giannis Thread - 13th Season with the Bucks

[ReasonablySober]

Ben Thompson was on with Bill Simmons last night. Lot of banter where Ben went at Simmons.

Only things of note was he said if Giannis wants to be dealt, he wants to start with Amen from Houston, #2 pick from Spurs or he tossed out a #3 pick plus Maxey and McCain idea.

Simmons said why Philly and Ben said Giannis would want to stay in the East if he's smart.

Didn't catch the rest where they talked Celtics remake.

Simmons pushing back on a Houston trade if it involves Thompson. "Well they need Thompson AND Giannis because of all the stuff Thompson provides".

[Ron Swanson]

I've never put much stock into psycho-analyzing Giannis and his motivations, and that particular media talking point/narrative tells me they have absolutely zero clue on what his motivations are as well. This idea that he would want to stay in the East just as some sort of lame "path of least resistance" type thing towards another championship would go against everything that dude stands for and has demonstrated. They're still operating like every guy is Lebron or Durant. I can't see Giannis giving two **** about which conference he's in.

[soxperry]

New Orleans very likely being awful next year is worth considering with the 2026 swap we owe.

It'd be way painful if the ping pong balls would otherwise give the Bucks #1 or another top pick but end up further back. But that's different than if we were to move out of the lottery entirely.

And of course the whole thing's fixed so the Bucks would get added consideration if we make an Adam Silver approved Giannis trade.

Giannis would have to be okay with it, but there is a scenario where we can just monitor New Orleans record all year and eventually pull the rug on our own season if they are bad enough and get into the lottery. We have virtually no shot at a title next year, but a top 10 pick in a great draft to go with the 31 1st might actually get us someone real.

[Ryan5UW]

As soon as Simmons claimed Giannis straight up for Evan Mobley was a "great trade" I stopped caring about anything he said.

[emunney]

Ben Thompson was on with Bill Simmons last night. Lot of banter where Ben went at Simmons.

Only things of note was he said if Giannis wants to be dealt, he wants to start with Amen from Houston, #2 pick from Spurs or he tossed out a #3 pick plus Maxey and McCain idea.

Simmons said why Philly and Ben said Giannis would want to stay in the East if he's smart.

Didn't catch the rest where they talked Celtics remake.

Simmons pushing back on a Houston trade if it involves Thompson. "Well they need Thompson AND Giannis because of all the stuff Thompson provides".

Yes it is good to put guys who can't shoot on the perimeter around Giannis.

[emunney]

I've never put much stock into psycho-analyzing Giannis and his motivations, and that particular media talking point/narrative tells me they have absolutely zero clue on what his motivations are as well. This idea that he would want to stay in the East just as some sort of lame "path of least resistance" type thing towards another championship would go against everything that dude stands for and has demonstrated. They're still operating like every guy is Lebron or Durant. I can't see Giannis giving two **** about which conference he's in.

I think Giannis prefers the cities in the Eastern Conference.

[ReasonablySober]

He just said as much this week. New York and the Florida cities.

[aboveAverage]

I've never put much stock into psycho-analyzing Giannis and his motivations, and that particular media talking point/narrative tells me they have absolutely zero clue on what his motivations are as well. This idea that he would want to stay in the East just as some sort of lame "path of least resistance" type thing towards another championship would go against everything that dude stands for and has demonstrated. They're still operating like every guy is Lebron or Durant. I can't see Giannis giving two **** about which conference he's in.

I think Giannis prefers the cities in the Eastern Conference.

He likes those cities, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to leave the Bucks.

[Ron Swanson]

I've never put much stock into psycho-analyzing Giannis and his motivations, and that particular media talking point/narrative tells me they have absolutely zero clue on what his motivations are as well. This idea that he would want to stay in the East just as some sort of lame "path of least resistance" type thing towards another championship would go against everything that dude stands for and has demonstrated. They're still operating like every guy is Lebron or Durant. I can't see Giannis giving two **** about which conference he's in.

I think Giannis prefers the cities in the Eastern Conference.

Ok, but that's not the reasoning they're using. All this talk about the "West is brutal", which is kinda subjective and debatable anyways (It's OKC and then a bunch of other teams), and it just seems like they're trying to connect dots that aren't there.

[CharityStripe34]

I've never put much stock into psycho-analyzing Giannis and his motivations, and that particular media talking point/narrative tells me they have absolutely zero clue on what his motivations are as well. This idea that he would want to stay in the East just as some sort of lame "path of least resistance" type thing towards another championship would go against everything that dude stands for and has demonstrated. They're still operating like every guy is Lebron or Durant. I can't see Giannis giving two **** about which conference he's in.

I think Giannis prefers the cities in the Eastern Conference.

Ok, but that's not the reasoning they're using. All this talk about the "West is brutal", which is kinda subjective and debatable anyways (It's OKC and then a bunch of other teams), and it just seems like they're trying to connect dots that aren't there.

The art of content-filling (spamming).

[soxperry]

As soon as Simmons claimed Giannis straight up for Evan Mobley was a "great trade" I stopped caring about anything he said.

i've been trying to wrap my head around his comments. same with Russillo. You may not like their Boston roots but they are normally on the money with nba stuff. Bill more so with the historical perspective and Ryen more so with just knowing ball and knowing the league. But that was a really stupid trade suggestion.. There is a slight caveat to that though...

Those two, especially Bill, have been absolutely in love with Mobley from the start. Ryen did admit that Milwaukee is losing the trade, value wise, but thought it was the safest road to getting a franchise player. I think we all hate it because we are hoping for a Paul George type trade where you can get a franchise guy and a butt load of picks. I think this conversation in general just highlights how hard it is to get fair value for one of the all time greats.

[Profound23]

As soon as Simmons claimed Giannis straight up for Evan Mobley was a "great trade" I stopped caring about anything he said.

i've been trying to wrap my head around his comments. same with Russillo. You may not like their Boston roots but they are normally on the money with nba stuff. Bill more so with the historical perspective and Ryen more so with just knowing ball and knowing the league. But that was a really stupid trade suggestion.. There is a slight caveat to that though...

Those two, especially Bill, have been absolutely in love with Mobley from the start. Ryen did admit that Milwaukee is losing the trade, value wise, but thought it was the safest road to getting a franchise player. I think we all hate it because we are hoping for a Paul George type trade where you can get a franchise guy and a butt load of picks. I think this conversation in general just highlights how hard it is to get fair value for one of the all time greats.

Yeah, even weirder was the podcast a week ago was stating pretty much the opposite. They kept saying Giannis won't be traded because any team trading for him would have to empty their roster/assets for him. A week later it's "Giannis for Mobley straight up is a great trade."

I love Mobley and think he is underutilized with that franchise. If Giannis demands out and we are able to get Mobley and a bunch of other assets for Giannis then I would be all for it. Mobley for Giannis straight up is like saying Tatum (pre-injury) for Jalen Johnson is a good trade. They would laugh at that offer, as should we.

[Matches Malone]

Ben Thompson was on with Bill Simmons last night. Lot of banter where Ben went at Simmons.

Ben was all over the place. Like months of Bucks frustration spewing out at Bill

[Ron Swanson]

Just go back to that trade proposal Bill made the other day to deal Jaylen Brown to Houston (which I don't think is bad btw). He had them getting back:

FVV
Tari Eason
Jabari Smith Jr.
10th overall pick

And keep in mind, that's even with attaching Jrue's negative value contract. And here Bill is now thinking a straight up swap for Giannis-Mobley is "great value". This is the Bill Simmons experience. A fleeting moment of clarity that fools you into thinking he's been pulled back to reality, only for him to follow it up with an absolutely delusional take that pretty clearly suggests he believes there's very little value gap between Giannis and Jaylen **** Brown on one of the three most expensive deals in basketball.

[emunney]

As soon as Simmons claimed Giannis straight up for Evan Mobley was a "great trade" I stopped caring about anything he said.

i've been trying to wrap my head around his comments. same with Russillo. You may not like their Boston roots but they are normally on the money with nba stuff. Bill more so with the historical perspective and Ryen more so with just knowing ball and knowing the league. But that was a really stupid trade suggestion.. There is a slight caveat to that though...

Those two, especially Bill, have been absolutely in love with Mobley from the start. Ryen did admit that Milwaukee is losing the trade, value wise, but thought it was the safest road to getting a franchise player. I think we all hate it because we are hoping for a Paul George type trade where you can get a franchise guy and a butt load of picks. I think this conversation in general just highlights how hard it is to get fair value for one of the all time greats.

To be fair, that PG trade was highly speculative at the time. SGA was a nice young player but nothing like he became. It's not impossible to make a parallel trade, but getting it right is unlikely.

[Bernman]

Absolutely no way I'm trading Giannis for that Hawks package. I'd like that for AD as a core to put around Flagg. But it's not the foundation of a team and would always be in want of a great player.

I like all three of those guys. Daniels is a great piece but will never play a large offensive role. Johnson is good when he's healthy, which is familiar to us at least. Risacher is not a bust, I like him, but he's not the typical #1 overall pick and using that as a selling point for him only draws attention to it. Right in between Wemby and Flagg. **** ouch.

Jalen Johnson has a rare combination of size, athleticism, handling, scoring, passing, defense. If you look at a list he shares in that regard, most are hall of famers. I wonder if he can really flourish with the ball in his hands away from Trae Young.

W/ the multiple picks we should then focus on upside like we did w/ AJ Johnson. Some have more likely 1st option upside than others. But I'd package 13 & 22 to move up and take Jeremiah Fears, who is basically a better, more polished version of AJJ as a prospect.

Anyways, as we see so much of the game now can be creating mismatches, & taking that guy on. We'd have several guys who could do that. We'd also have a potentially elite d.

And if it wasn't enough, we could package players in reverse to get a #1 option, like Atlanta would be doing here, & Houston's in discussion for. If these guys developed in Milwaukee, it'd take less players going out, meaning the #1 option would have guys to play with actually.

[machu46]

As soon as Simmons claimed Giannis straight up for Evan Mobley was a "great trade" I stopped caring about anything he said.

i've been trying to wrap my head around his comments. same with Russillo. You may not like their Boston roots but they are normally on the money with nba stuff. Bill more so with the historical perspective and Ryen more so with just knowing ball and knowing the league. But that was a really stupid trade suggestion.. There is a slight caveat to that though...

Those two, especially Bill, have been absolutely in love with Mobley from the start. Ryen did admit that Milwaukee is losing the trade, value wise, but thought it was the safest road to getting a franchise player. I think we all hate it because we are hoping for a Paul George type trade where you can get a franchise guy and a butt load of picks. I think this conversation in general just highlights how hard it is to get fair value for one of the all time greats.

To be fair, that PG trade was highly speculative at the time. SGA was a nice young player but nothing like he became. It's not impossible to make a parallel trade, but getting it right is unlikely.

Yeah I feel like at the time, SGA was one of those young players that everyone liked because he had a knack for being in the right place at the right time, making the right play, etc. I don't think anyone really envisioned him ever getting close to an MVP.

At any rate, I think Mobley is absolutely good enough to be the centerpiece in a Giannis trade. The issue is Cleveland just can't add much to that between their lack of assets and their second apron status.

Sent from my Pixel 9 Pro using Tapatalk

[th87]

New Orleans very likely being awful next year is worth considering with the 2026 swap we owe.

It'd be way painful if the ping pong balls would otherwise give the Bucks #1 or another top pick but end up further back. But that's different than if we were to move out of the lottery entirely.

And of course the whole thing's fixed so the Bucks would get added consideration if we make an Adam Silver approved Giannis trade.

Watch that be when he decides to be honorable and lets things play out organically.

[Ron Swanson]

Silver stepped in and vetoed us getting Bogdan Bogdanovic. He ain't doing the city of Milwaukee any favors, ever.

[emunney]

i've been trying to wrap my head around his comments. same with Russillo. You may not like their Boston roots but they are normally on the money with nba stuff. Bill more so with the historical perspective and Ryen more so with just knowing ball and knowing the league. But that was a really stupid trade suggestion.. There is a slight caveat to that though...

Those two, especially Bill, have been absolutely in love with Mobley from the start. Ryen did admit that Milwaukee is losing the trade, value wise, but thought it was the safest road to getting a franchise player. I think we all hate it because we are hoping for a Paul George type trade where you can get a franchise guy and a butt load of picks. I think this conversation in general just highlights how hard it is to get fair value for one of the all time greats.

To be fair, that PG trade was highly speculative at the time. SGA was a nice young player but nothing like he became. It's not impossible to make a parallel trade, but getting it right is unlikely.

Yeah I feel like at the time, SGA was one of those young players that everyone liked because he had a knack for being in the right place at the right time, making the right play, etc. I don't think anyone really envisioned him ever getting close to an MVP.

At any rate, I think Mobley is absolutely good enough to be the centerpiece in a Giannis trade. The issue is Cleveland just can't add much to that between their lack of assets and their second apron status.

Sent from my Pixel 9 Pro using Tapatalk

Short of getting another top 5 player, getting a top 20ish guy who's also yet to turn 24 is about as good as you could hope for. I would ultimately prefer Flagg but the certainty with Mobley is a plus, and he has tons of potential yet to be uncorked. I don't know that we could get either one, but, fortunately, I also don't think we're trading Giannis.