WT: Giannis Antetokounmpo's Future With Bucks 'The Elephant In The Room' In NBA

[gaoj2]

Just repeat what 2018 trade. Copy and paste.
Get Gannis and portis, those two have chemistry just like kawhi and Danny green.
Trade RJ Barrett, dick, may be quickly? This year’ pick, 2026 pacers pick, 2027 first round.
I will throw in quickly and sign a point guard from free agency.
Barnes, Agbaji, Ingram, Gannis, Potlel
Lowry, waiter, Lawson, Boucher, battle, Portis, Mogbo, Ulrich.
May be add more with free agency?

[MiamiSPX]

I agree, and I think the obvious team is GSW. Already have the superstar guard in Curry. In a very good market in California. Giannis gets the best of both worlds - opportunity to win, and capitalize on his marketability.

GSW also has matching salary in Jimmy, plus younger players (Kuminga & Pods) + picks to offer. Could easily see Jimmy being rerouted to Suns, Durant to Rockets and then some of the young Rockets players moved to the Bucks.

Agree about GS. I think his list will be the usual suspects....GS, both LA teams, all the Texas teams, and Miami.

Remind me again why Jimmy would willingly choose Milwaukee...

What exactly do the LA teams have to offer now? Harden and Kawhi take up most of the cap on the Clippers, and they don’t have picks to trade. Similarly, Luka and LeBron take up most of the cap on the Lakers, and they don’t have picks to trade.

Houston makes sense in terms of value. They have enough youth to trade. The challenge is, does it make sense for them to trade for Giannis while not having enough shooting around him to make it work? If I were Houston, I’d look at a wing or guard who can shoot to complement their core. San Antonio doesn’t make sense - but I’d love to see it. Not sure Dallas can offer better than we can in terms of team, especially considering they’re set for bigs and have just traded for AD.

Miami could make a play. Not sure that what they have to offer (Wiggins/Youth) would be better than what we have to offer (IQ/youth).

Jimmy doesn't care where he plays as long as he is getting paid. Warriors would be smart to ditch him by the '26 season anyway, because that is when he will start his demands for a new contract again. And if you can ditch Jimmy for Giannis, you do that in a second, considering the latter is an actual superstar top 5 player.

I also wasn't listing teams that would make a play for him. I was listing the teams I am guessing Giannis will put on his list. There will undoubtedly be teams that simply cannot trade for him....doesn't mean he won't list them anyway. Not trying to be a downer because again, I would move Scottie for him before you can even blink.....but I am certain Toronto won't be on his list of teams. Not even because history tells us that will happen, there are so many other factors, IMO< working against us.

[JB7]

First, the relationship between Masai and Giannis will have no bearing, considering Masai's contract status. That sell job would be impossible when you yourself don't even know if you'll be there.

Second, his wife is from California.

Third, I've seen people say that regardless of what we give up, we would still be in a better situation than MIL. That's debatable, but even if we concede that point, Giannis won't simply be looking for "better than Milwaukee". He will want to compete for championships with at least 1 other star sidekick. And I hate to break it to you, but he will not look at non-stars like RJ and IQ the same way some here do. I am in the minority who love the BI trade, but Giannis isn't hitching his wagon to a 1x All-Star that is always injured. Likewise, trying to sell him on how we nailed the last draft is laughable. He will want star help already in place, not youngsters who might become good rotation pieces.

Fourth, Kawhi and Dame are the only stars I can think of, who demanded a trade and didn't end up where they wanted. Kawhi wasn't even on speaking terms with the Spurs and they had differing opinions on a very big issue, so that is a little different. With Dame, Cronin really did try to send him to Miami, but Riley stopped taking his calls. This is very well known. The only thing not know is if Riley just wasn't that interested, or if he arrogantly thought he would get Dame with his paltry trade offer (I lean towards the latter). Every other superstar gets his way.

You should all look up how much Giannis and his wife do for the Milwaukee area. They are revered there. He also brought them a title. He will absolutely have a great influence in where he goes. Especially when the consensus in basketball circles is that the Bucks have failed him, not the other way around (I don't fully agree because Giannis has clearly been playing GM in the shadows, poorly).

There is just no way, IMO, that he gets moved somewhere that wasn't on his list of destinations. Toronto will not be on that list.

I agree, and I think the obvious team is GSW. Already have the superstar guard in Curry. In a very good market in California. Giannis gets the best of both worlds - opportunity to win, and capitalize on his marketability.

GSW also has matching salary in Jimmy, plus younger players (Kuminga & Pods) + picks to offer. Could easily see Jimmy being rerouted to Suns, Durant to Rockets and then some of the young Rockets players moved to the Bucks.

Agree about GS. I think his list will be the usual suspects....GS, both LA teams, all the Texas teams, and Miami.

I actually think it will be much more narrow. I think, while the location/marketing is huge for him, he still wouldn't sacrifice the chance to win, and what he needs to win is a star guard. GSW and LAL offer that. LAC & Knicks also have star guard play, but do they have the assets to make a move for Giannis? And Miami, Dallas and Houston don't have star guards. SAS is probably not a big enough market, and the team is still building.

[Merit]

People thinking you can get Giannis without including Scottie in the deal are out to lunch.
There will be a bidding war, not like the Doncic trade because we all know he's on the market and the Bucks' situation.

The trade STARTS at:

Scottie Barnes (on max extension)
Gradey Dick (cheap rookie contract) - can sub in Walter.
2025 1st round pick (wherever it lands)
2027 1st round pick (top 5 protected)
2029 1st round pick (unprotected)
Pick swaps in 2026 and 2028

Might be +/- a pick or swap, but that's the type of package it's going to take to get him.

If the Bucks want to get younger, and get off salary, they'd push to include Kuzma and get back RJ; (or IQ but more likely RJ imo since his value is higher atm, and he's on a shorter, cheaper deal). I would not be surprised if this is the outcome of whatever Giannis trade is out there.

Then you're looking at the same package as above + RJ. Maybe we can negotiate one pick less, or higher protections on 2029.

Either way, MIL isn't taking much less than that in a deal.

We'd have IQ/Agbaji/Ingram/Giannis/Poeltl, Shead/Walter/Battle/Kuzma/?

Clearly some work needing to be done still, but that's a solid roster ready to compete right away for HCA.

I'd do it.

I’ve been out to lunch before. Point of fact I’m taken out to lunch quite often. Before I forget - there’s no way we’re trading for Brandon Ingram right? There’s zero chance we trade OG and he brings back more value than Pascal, right? Oh and Jak is a horrible player and our team was better without Fred, until of course we were in the lotto twice in a row. LOL

Kuzma’s character isn’t something I’d be interested in now, but he’s always been talented offensively.

If I listened to everything the board said and considered it truth, I’d really be out to lunch.

So you predicted those things to come true?

I like to think I have been more right than wrong when it comes to player, team, and trade evaluations. My response here is to the posts I've seen offering Poeltl, Dick, Agbaji, IQ etc., and like, 2 picks, for Giannis. I get that there are homers on this board, and guys who only make trades via NBA2k, but I think most rational people would say there's no way that happens even on 2k.

If we win the lotto and get the 1st overall pick, MAYBE there's a chance they take Flagg and matching (good) salary, but you gotta look at it from the Bucks' perspective, knowing that they have no picks coming in, they're still going to be asking for Flagg + multiple picks/young guys off our roster. I would also be surprised if they didn't eventually include BKN/NOP/POR in a 3 way deal for them to get back control of at least some of their picks.

I don’t think I can take responsibility for the outcome, but I advocated for my perspective on prospects and picking valuations.

I don’t play 2k, so I can’t comment. That said, I’m not averse to trading multiple picks for Giannis, but it needs to make sense both short and long term. One thing we can observe from the front office is that they make the long-term play. Their focus is firmly on player development. The Kawhi trade was made after they had tried with the group several times and had enough depth to go all in. I’m not sure that they’re there yet. We haven’t even seen IQ/RJ/Ingram/Scottie/Poeltl play one minute together as a group!

Frankly, if we get Cooper, there’s no reason to trade for Giannis, but it would make Scottie expendable. In that scenario, I can see us making a move to win now by trading Scottie to Milwaukee. The human side of that stings the same way the Demar trade did for me.

[Merit]

Agree about GS. I think his list will be the usual suspects....GS, both LA teams, all the Texas teams, and Miami.

Remind me again why Jimmy would willingly choose Milwaukee...

What exactly do the LA teams have to offer now? Harden and Kawhi take up most of the cap on the Clippers, and they don’t have picks to trade. Similarly, Luka and LeBron take up most of the cap on the Lakers, and they don’t have picks to trade.

Houston makes sense in terms of value. They have enough youth to trade. The challenge is, does it make sense for them to trade for Giannis while not having enough shooting around him to make it work? If I were Houston, I’d look at a wing or guard who can shoot to complement their core. San Antonio doesn’t make sense - but I’d love to see it. Not sure Dallas can offer better than we can in terms of team, especially considering they’re set for bigs and have just traded for AD.

Miami could make a play. Not sure that what they have to offer (Wiggins/Youth) would be better than what we have to offer (IQ/youth).

Jimmy doesn't care where he plays as long as he is getting paid. Warriors would be smart to ditch him by the '26 season anyway, because that is when he will start his demands for a new contract again. And if you can ditch Jimmy for Giannis, you do that in a second, considering the latter is an actual superstar top 5 player.

I also wasn't listing teams that would make a play for him. I was listing the teams I am guessing Giannis will put on his list. There will undoubtedly be teams that simply cannot trade for him....doesn't mean he won't list them anyway. Not trying to be a downer because again, I would move Scottie for him before you can even blink.....but I am certain Toronto won't be on his list of teams. Not even because history tells us that will happen, there are so many other factors, IMO< working against us.

Obviously the Warriors would trade Jimmy for Giannis. Like I’d trade Drexler for Shaq too. From what I’ve observed they have a good thing going there in GSW and unless they win a chip (not impossible) I don’t think Jimmy moves anywhere solely for the money. There’s a reason he stonewalled other trades and pushed his way out of Miami. He wanted to win.

I hear you on being moderate in terms of your valuation of Scottie and I respect that.

EDIT: KD to Houston makes a world of sense for them, and that would represent a win-now move and would aggregate their youth appropriately. I can also see the Suns going for it as they need depth and upside in the worst way. To me, KD >>>> Giannis for Houston, especially considering they have Sengun.

[TheRaptor!]

People thinking you can get Giannis without including Scottie in the deal are out to lunch.
There will be a bidding war, not like the Doncic trade because we all know he's on the market and the Bucks' situation.

The trade STARTS at:

Scottie Barnes (on max extension)
Gradey Dick (cheap rookie contract) - can sub in Walter.
2025 1st round pick (wherever it lands)
2027 1st round pick (top 5 protected)
2029 1st round pick (unprotected)
Pick swaps in 2026 and 2028

Might be +/- a pick or swap, but that's the type of package it's going to take to get him.

If the Bucks want to get younger, and get off salary, they'd push to include Kuzma and get back RJ; (or IQ but more likely RJ imo since his value is higher atm, and he's on a shorter, cheaper deal). I would not be surprised if this is the outcome of whatever Giannis trade is out there.

Then you're looking at the same package as above + RJ. Maybe we can negotiate one pick less, or higher protections on 2029.

Either way, MIL isn't taking much less than that in a deal.

We'd have IQ/Agbaji/Ingram/Giannis/Poeltl, Shead/Walter/Battle/Kuzma/?

Clearly some work needing to be done still, but that's a solid roster ready to compete right away for HCA.

I'd do it.

I’ve been out to lunch before. Point of fact I’m taken out to lunch quite often. Before I forget - there’s no way we’re trading for Brandon Ingram right? There’s zero chance we trade OG and he brings back more value than Pascal, right? Oh and Jak is a horrible player and our team was better without Fred, until of course we were in the lotto twice in a row. LOL

Kuzma’s character isn’t something I’d be interested in now, but he’s always been talented offensively.

If I listened to everything the board said and considered it truth, I’d really be out to lunch.

A players value might not be what he will be traded for.

What I mean is, the caliber of player Siakam is was way more than what was sent out to us for him

Why can't we "send out less" than what Giannis is worth?

[ontnut]

People thinking you can get Giannis without including Scottie in the deal are out to lunch.
There will be a bidding war, not like the Doncic trade because we all know he's on the market and the Bucks' situation.

The trade STARTS at:

Scottie Barnes (on max extension)
Gradey Dick (cheap rookie contract) - can sub in Walter.
2025 1st round pick (wherever it lands)
2027 1st round pick (top 5 protected)
2029 1st round pick (unprotected)
Pick swaps in 2026 and 2028

Might be +/- a pick or swap, but that's the type of package it's going to take to get him.

If the Bucks want to get younger, and get off salary, they'd push to include Kuzma and get back RJ; (or IQ but more likely RJ imo since his value is higher atm, and he's on a shorter, cheaper deal). I would not be surprised if this is the outcome of whatever Giannis trade is out there.

Then you're looking at the same package as above + RJ. Maybe we can negotiate one pick less, or higher protections on 2029.

Either way, MIL isn't taking much less than that in a deal.

We'd have IQ/Agbaji/Ingram/Giannis/Poeltl, Shead/Walter/Battle/Kuzma/?

Clearly some work needing to be done still, but that's a solid roster ready to compete right away for HCA.

I'd do it.

I’ve been out to lunch before. Point of fact I’m taken out to lunch quite often. Before I forget - there’s no way we’re trading for Brandon Ingram right? There’s zero chance we trade OG and he brings back more value than Pascal, right? Oh and Jak is a horrible player and our team was better without Fred, until of course we were in the lotto twice in a row. LOL

Kuzma’s character isn’t something I’d be interested in now, but he’s always been talented offensively.

If I listened to everything the board said and considered it truth, I’d really be out to lunch.

A players value might not be what he will be traded for.

What I mean is, the caliber of player Siakam is was way more than what was sent out to us for him

Why can't we "send out less" than what Giannis is worth?

Siakam was expiring and is older than Giannis by a year. We were (self-imposedly) pushed into a corner with that deal, and everyone knew it, especially after we traded OG it was clear what direction we were going, so the return was less that expected. Plus, there did not appear to be a bidding war to trade for an expiring Siakam as most contenders were either set, had made their move already, or had no use for him at the time. OTOH, Giannis is getting paid $58m per for 2 more years plus a player option. While injuries and age-related downfall of the Bucks are a pressure, they're not immediately pressed to move Giannis like we were. They could wait a year, they could wait 2 years. For $11m more than Siakam with cost controlled certainty for at least 2 years, for a player who's a perennial MVP candidate, the value is way, way higher. If Siakam under those conditions returned 3 1sts and Bruce Brown (a near first round equivalent), I'd estimate Giannis to be worth at least double that. 6 firsts and and 2 1st round equivalents.

Fact is, there's an exponential premium typically paid for the super top tier guys because they're the difference between contending, and being a second round team like the Pacers. This premium typically goes up if there's a bidding war, which I would expect to exist for Giannis.

That's why we can't send out less that what he's worth, because the market presumably will be way more robust, in addition to the value being way higher.

[Raps in 4]

Just repeat what 2018 trade. Copy and paste.
Get Gannis and portis, those two have chemistry just like kawhi and Danny green.
Trade RJ Barrett, dick, may be quickly? This year’ pick, 2026 pacers pick, 2027 first round.
I will throw in quickly and sign a point guard from free agency.
Barnes, Agbaji, Ingram, Gannis, Potlel
Lowry, waiter, Lawson, Boucher, battle, Portis, Mogbo, Ulrich.
May be add more with free agency?

We had a top-20 player in Lowry and an up-and-coming top-25 player in Siakam on that team. We have no such players on this team.

[Merit]

I’ve been out to lunch before. Point of fact I’m taken out to lunch quite often. Before I forget - there’s no way we’re trading for Brandon Ingram right? There’s zero chance we trade OG and he brings back more value than Pascal, right? Oh and Jak is a horrible player and our team was better without Fred, until of course we were in the lotto twice in a row. LOL

Kuzma’s character isn’t something I’d be interested in now, but he’s always been talented offensively.

If I listened to everything the board said and considered it truth, I’d really be out to lunch.

A players value might not be what he will be traded for.

What I mean is, the caliber of player Siakam is was way more than what was sent out to us for him

Why can't we "send out less" than what Giannis is worth?

Siakam was expiring and is older than Giannis by a year. We were (self-imposedly) pushed into a corner with that deal, and everyone knew it, especially after we traded OG it was clear what direction we were going, so the return was less that expected. Plus, there did not appear to be a bidding war to trade for an expiring Siakam as most contenders were either set, or had no use for him at the time. OTOH, Giannis is getting paid $58m per for 2 more years plus a player option. While injuries and age-related downfall of the Bucks are a pressure, they're not immediately pressed to move Giannis. They could wait a year, they could wait 2 years. For $11m more than Siakam with cost controlled certainty for at least 2 years, for a player who's a perennial MVP candidate, the value is way, way higher .

Fact is, there's an exponential premium typically paid for the super top tier guys because they're the difference between contending, and being a second round team like the Pacers. This premium typically goes up if there's a bidding war, which I would expect to exist for Giannis.

That's why we can't send out less that what he's worth, because the market presumably will be way more robust.

While I hear your reasoning, I don’t necessarily agree.

The moment Giannis asks out is when his value falls off a cliff. That is a scenario I can see happening. Sadly, Dame’s Achilles injury is a huge stumbling block to Giannis staying in Milwaukee. It’s going to be a whole lot like the Greek Olympic team in Milwaukee next season, in my estimation. Consider that Brook Lopez is expiring, and they traded both Middleton and Jrue. They have basically zero mid-tier contracts, and none of their youth is worth building around. Giannis (and Dame) are their two significant chips to press reset on their organization. Doc Rivers has to go.

I can see all that happening sooner rather than later.

[ontnut]

Just repeat what 2018 trade. Copy and paste.
Get Gannis and portis, those two have chemistry just like kawhi and Danny green.
Trade RJ Barrett, dick, may be quickly? This year’ pick, 2026 pacers pick, 2027 first round.
I will throw in quickly and sign a point guard from free agency.
Barnes, Agbaji, Ingram, Gannis, Potlel
Lowry, waiter, Lawson, Boucher, battle, Portis, Mogbo, Ulrich.
May be add more with free agency?

If only it was that easy, right?

Also, we don't have the Pacers pick, it was traded for Ingram.
Quickley isn't a throw in, his value might be net-zero or even negative at this point given the size and length of the contract, and his mediocre performance this year. Bucks would be rebuilding - why would they trade a top 3 player for the 2nd, 4th, and ~6th?? best guys off of a bottom 7 team, while only getting back two picks, presumably out of the lotto?

Try to think of it from the other team's perspective. I mean, hell - would you trade Scottie for that package right now? lol.

[Merit]

Just repeat what 2018 trade. Copy and paste.
Get Gannis and portis, those two have chemistry just like kawhi and Danny green.
Trade RJ Barrett, dick, may be quickly? This year’ pick, 2026 pacers pick, 2027 first round.
I will throw in quickly and sign a point guard from free agency.
Barnes, Agbaji, Ingram, Gannis, Potlel
Lowry, waiter, Lawson, Boucher, battle, Portis, Mogbo, Ulrich.
May be add more with free agency?

We had a top-20 player in Lowry and an up-and-coming top-25 player in Siakam on that team. We have no such players on this team.

Scottie? Ingram?

Plus we have depth even if we trade RJ and IQ.

[Merit]

Just repeat what 2018 trade. Copy and paste.
Get Gannis and portis, those two have chemistry just like kawhi and Danny green.
Trade RJ Barrett, dick, may be quickly? This year’ pick, 2026 pacers pick, 2027 first round.
I will throw in quickly and sign a point guard from free agency.
Barnes, Agbaji, Ingram, Gannis, Potlel
Lowry, waiter, Lawson, Boucher, battle, Portis, Mogbo, Ulrich.
May be add more with free agency?

If only it was that easy, right?

Also, we don't have the Pacers pick, it was traded for Ingram.
Quickley isn't a throw in, his value might be net-zero or even negative at this point given the size and length of the contract, and his mediocre performance this year. Bucks would be rebuilding - why would they trade a top 3 player for the 2nd, 4th, and ~6th?? best guys off of a bottom 7 team, while only getting back two picks, presumably out of the lotto?

Try to think of it from the other team's perspective. I mean, hell - would you trade Scottie for that package right now? lol.

If Scottie asked out, then yes - I would trade him for RJ, IQ, Gradey, and two firsts. Yes, yes I would.

[Raps in 4]

Just repeat what 2018 trade. Copy and paste.
Get Gannis and portis, those two have chemistry just like kawhi and Danny green.
Trade RJ Barrett, dick, may be quickly? This year’ pick, 2026 pacers pick, 2027 first round.
I will throw in quickly and sign a point guard from free agency.
Barnes, Agbaji, Ingram, Gannis, Potlel
Lowry, waiter, Lawson, Boucher, battle, Portis, Mogbo, Ulrich.
May be add more with free agency?

We had a top-20 player in Lowry and an up-and-coming top-25 player in Siakam on that team. We have no such players on this team.

Scottie? Ingram?

Plus we have depth even if we trade RJ and IQ.

I don't think Scottie is a top-25 player, certainly not the version we got this season. Ingram is debatable. Siakam scored on similar efficiency, but he also played defence, and his style of play fit more easily into a system (Ingram needs the ball in his hands).

[ontnut]

A players value might not be what he will be traded for.

What I mean is, the caliber of player Siakam is was way more than what was sent out to us for him

Why can't we "send out less" than what Giannis is worth?

Siakam was expiring and is older than Giannis by a year. We were (self-imposedly) pushed into a corner with that deal, and everyone knew it, especially after we traded OG it was clear what direction we were going, so the return was less that expected. Plus, there did not appear to be a bidding war to trade for an expiring Siakam as most contenders were either set, or had no use for him at the time. OTOH, Giannis is getting paid $58m per for 2 more years plus a player option. While injuries and age-related downfall of the Bucks are a pressure, they're not immediately pressed to move Giannis. They could wait a year, they could wait 2 years. For $11m more than Siakam with cost controlled certainty for at least 2 years, for a player who's a perennial MVP candidate, the value is way, way higher .

Fact is, there's an exponential premium typically paid for the super top tier guys because they're the difference between contending, and being a second round team like the Pacers. This premium typically goes up if there's a bidding war, which I would expect to exist for Giannis.

That's why we can't send out less that what he's worth, because the market presumably will be way more robust.

While I hear your reasoning, I don’t necessarily agree.

The moment Giannis asks out is when his value falls off a cliff. That is a scenario I can see happening. Sadly, Dame’s Achilles injury is a huge stumbling block to Giannis staying in Milwaukee. It’s going to be a whole lot like the Greek Olympic team in Milwaukee next season, in my estimation. Consider that Brook Lopez is expiring, and they traded both Middleton and Jrue. They have basically zero mid-tier contracts, and none of their youth is worth building around. Giannis (and Dame) are their two significant chips to press reset on their organization. Doc Rivers has to go.

I can see all that happening sooner rather than later.

It's all dependent on how quickly Horst can come to that realization, and whether or not the organization will green light such a trade. Horst doesn't strike me as the type of guy to give up when there's even a sliver of a path forward (see all previous Bucks trades lol).
MIL is in some deep doodoo long term, that's for sure.

But even if Giannis did ask out, I don't think it actually drops the offer values that much. Any sensible playoff team other than OKC and maybe BOS/CLE should be willing to part with their future to add him, and there will be teams on the play-in cusp who would be willing to bid on him too.

If Horst trades Giannis (assuming he's even around to do that), it might be the last thing he does as GM of the Bucks, so I'd assume he'd want to pad his resume for the next job by getting everything he can for him.

[Merit]

Agree about GS. I think his list will be the usual suspects....GS, both LA teams, all the Texas teams, and Miami.

Remind me again why Jimmy would willingly choose Milwaukee...

What exactly do the LA teams have to offer now? Harden and Kawhi take up most of the cap on the Clippers, and they don’t have picks to trade. Similarly, Luka and LeBron take up most of the cap on the Lakers, and they don’t have picks to trade.

Houston makes sense in terms of value. They have enough youth to trade. The challenge is, does it make sense for them to trade for Giannis while not having enough shooting around him to make it work? If I were Houston, I’d look at a wing or guard who can shoot to complement their core. San Antonio doesn’t make sense - but I’d love to see it. Not sure Dallas can offer better than we can in terms of team, especially considering they’re set for bigs and have just traded for AD.

Miami could make a play. Not sure that what they have to offer (Wiggins/Youth) would be better than what we have to offer (IQ/youth).

I think the Lakers are able to trade two firsts, so if they can come in with a package of Reaves, Knecht and 2 firsts that would be fairly competitive (Reaves would break out in the leading role on the Bucks imo). Houston can offer Sengun+Sheppard. I don't think the Clippers/Heat/Mavs have enough.

I feel we (the raptors) handily beat that trade package with IQ/Barnes/Gradey. Plus LA desperately needs the shooting and depth that Reaves and Knecht provide, though they always find a way to grab late career vets as stopgaps. I’m also not as sold on Reaves or Knecht as #1 options.

If Sengun is moved, I can see that being the best package for Milwaukee. That said, I think KD is a better fit in Houston than Giannis. Houston has the assets to get both Giannis and KD, but I’m not certain about the salary side.

[ontnut]

Just repeat what 2018 trade. Copy and paste.
Get Gannis and portis, those two have chemistry just like kawhi and Danny green.
Trade RJ Barrett, dick, may be quickly? This year’ pick, 2026 pacers pick, 2027 first round.
I will throw in quickly and sign a point guard from free agency.
Barnes, Agbaji, Ingram, Gannis, Potlel
Lowry, waiter, Lawson, Boucher, battle, Portis, Mogbo, Ulrich.
May be add more with free agency?

If only it was that easy, right?

Also, we don't have the Pacers pick, it was traded for Ingram.
Quickley isn't a throw in, his value might be net-zero or even negative at this point given the size and length of the contract, and his mediocre performance this year. Bucks would be rebuilding - why would they trade a top 3 player for the 2nd, 4th, and ~6th?? best guys off of a bottom 7 team, while only getting back two picks, presumably out of the lotto?

Try to think of it from the other team's perspective. I mean, hell - would you trade Scottie for that package right now? lol.

If Scottie asked out, then yes - I would trade him for RJ, IQ, Gradey, and two firsts. Yes, yes I would.

If Scottie was on the Bucks instead of Giannis, you would take that package for him? Two mid-tier guys locked up to $30m contracts long(-er) term, a role player prospect, and 2 1sts out of the lottery? And you're still committed to Kuzma and Lillard for the next few years? When you didn't control any of your own picks? I wouldn't. Lillard(hurt)/IQ/RJ/Dick/Kuzma is your locked in team now into 2026-27. That's worse than treadmill, and you only have 2 picks in the 20s to look forward to? Yikes. I think you'd get fired for that once the team starts the season 3-12 getting blown out by 20 nightly because they can't play any defence.

[ontnut]

Remind me again why Jimmy would willingly choose Milwaukee...

What exactly do the LA teams have to offer now? Harden and Kawhi take up most of the cap on the Clippers, and they don’t have picks to trade. Similarly, Luka and LeBron take up most of the cap on the Lakers, and they don’t have picks to trade.

Houston makes sense in terms of value. They have enough youth to trade. The challenge is, does it make sense for them to trade for Giannis while not having enough shooting around him to make it work? If I were Houston, I’d look at a wing or guard who can shoot to complement their core. San Antonio doesn’t make sense - but I’d love to see it. Not sure Dallas can offer better than we can in terms of team, especially considering they’re set for bigs and have just traded for AD.

Miami could make a play. Not sure that what they have to offer (Wiggins/Youth) would be better than what we have to offer (IQ/youth).

I think the Lakers are able to trade two firsts, so if they can come in with a package of Reaves, Knecht and 2 firsts that would be fairly competitive (Reaves would break out in the leading role on the Bucks imo). Houston can offer Sengun+Sheppard. I don't think the Clippers/Heat/Mavs have enough.

I feel we (the raptors) handily beat that trade package with IQ/Barnes/Gradey. Plus LA desperately needs the shooting and depth that Reaves and Knecht provide, though they always find a way to grab late career vets as stopgaps. I’m also not as sold on Reaves or Knecht as #1 options.

If Sengun is moved, I can see that being the best package for Milwaukee. That said, I think KD is a better fit in Houston than Giannis. Houston has the assets to get both Giannis and KD, but I’m not certain about the salary side.

Lakers package wouldn't make sense for either team imo.
Don't overlook teams like the Hawks, Magic and Spurs (moreso Magic and Spurs). They have the young guys and pick equity to make a deal happen.

Agree KD is the fit in HOU given they're so high on Amen, who is able to play that all-around defensive role that Giannis is great at (but obviously Amen is not as gifted offensively). A Giannis KD pairing would be fun to watch over the next 2 seasons that's for sure.

I really just want to see Giannis on the Spurs tho. What a hell of a pairing that would be.

[redraptor77]

Do we have enough to pry Giannis and Ja Morant
Scottie, RJ, parts and 2025 Pick for Giannis
Quickly, Walter/Dick, 2026 Pick for Ja Morant

Giannis, Jakob, Ingram, Dick/Walter, Ja Morant
Shead, Ochai, Mogbo plus 2nd rounder

[ishoy123]

Do we have enough to pry Giannis and Ja Morant
Scottie, RJ, parts and 2025 Pick for Giannis
Quickly, Walter/Dick, 2026 Pick for Ja Morant

Giannis, Jakob, Ingram, Dick/Walter, Ja Morant
Shead, Ochai, Mogbo plus 2nd rounder

That team cannot shoot to save its life

[mappiah19]

Scottie, RJ,salary filler and pick(s) for Giannis and Portis. Can't see other teams beating this offer.

Quickly, Agbaji, Ingram, Giannis, Jak