Because the Milwaukee Bucks owe future first round picks to the New Orleans Pelicans and Portland Trail Blazers, there is growing anticipation that they will try to include either team into a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade to regain some of their draft capital.
The Pelicans control Milwaukee's first round picks in 2025, 2026 and 2027 due to the Jrue Holiday trade of 2020, while the Blazers control their picks in 2028, 2029 and 2030 because of the Damian Lillard deal in 2023.
The Brooklyn Nets similarly reacquired control of their first round picks in 2025 and 2026 from the Houston Rockets as they separately traded Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks to fully embrace a rebuild.
As the week opened, there was a report from ESPN that Antetokounmpo was open-minded about a future away from the Bucks for the first time in his career. There has yet to be any publicly known resolution on whether Antetokounmpo will request a trade or decide he prefers to remain with the Bucks.
