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After the devastating Damian Lillard injury effectively ended the Bucks' season in the first round for the third consecutive year, it's clear that something needs to change in Milwaukee. They only have one move left — trade Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Milwaukee doesn't have avenues to retool given their lack of draft assets, young players, and bloated salary cap. Other teams are well aware of their situation, and the vultures are circling.
If the Bucks do decide to rebuild, then now would be a good time to do it. The 2026 draft is a great one, and Giannis is at the peak of his trade value. A bidding war could very easily break out for his services.
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The Bucks would want young prospects and picks back for Giannis in order to reset their timeline. A pure tank doesn't make much sense given that Milwaukee doesn't control any of its own picks until 2031, so keeping the team halfway decent might be their best option going forward.
Here's every team's best offer that would fulfill what the Bucks are looking for.
MORE: Why Damian Lillard's injury signals the end of the Giannis era in Milwaukee
Ranking Giannis Antetokounmpo offseason trade destinations
Tier 4: Not enough pieces to get a trade done
These teams could do their best, but they'd be blown out of the water by other offers.
29. Nuggets
Giannis would be unbelievable next to Nikola Jokic. The Nuggets will only have one tradeable pick post-draft, though, and Jamal Murray or Michael Porter Jr. as outgoing salary isn't close to enough to get it done.
28. Lakers
The Lakers could be a second apron team if LeBron comes back at his max. They only have one first-rounder to trade, along with Austin Reaves, Dalton Knecht, and salary filler. Unless they wanted to move Luka Doncic, then that's not enough for Giannis.
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27. Suns
A Kevin Durant-for-Giannis trade could work in theory. The Suns would certainly say yes. The Bucks would hang up the phone.
Durant is still a top 15 player, but he doesn't match the Bucks timeline and he's older than Giannis. The Suns don't have enough prospects or picks (one future first-rounder) to swing this deal.
26. Knicks
The Knicks have zero unprotected first-round picks available to trade, thus taking them out of the running for Giannis.
25. Warriors
The Warriors chose a lane in trading for Jimmy Butler. They could have up to three first-round picks this summer, but they don't have the outgoing money to match Giannis' $54.1 million salary.
24. Celtics
The Celtics are projected to be in the apron again, so any Giannis trade would need to see them sending a ton of money out. Would they move Jaylen Brown in exchange for the Bucks star? They could pair Brown with two first-round picks.
23. Pacers
The Pacers have some intriguing young players with trade value. Andrew Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, and Jarace Walker all look like good rotation pieces. They could pair those three, along with some more salary filler, with two unprotected first-rounders, but that's not enough.
22. Clippers
The Clippers will have two first-round picks but are an old team that doesn't have any players Milwaukee would want aside from Ivica Zubac, who is essential to their roster.
21. Wolves
The Wolves don't have any unprotected first-rounders available to move. The only way that they could make a competitive offer is if they included Anthony Edwards. That seems like a non-starter.
20. Mavericks
The Mavs are desperate to get back to the Finals, but Kyrie Irving doesn't have much trade value given that he'll miss most or all of next season while rehabbing his torn ACL. Anthony Davis doesn't fit the Bucks' timeline, and Dallas' two unprotected first-rounders aren't a good enough sweetener anyway.
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Tier 3: Timeline doesn't make sense
These four teams do have plenty of draft picks and young players to offer, but Giannis is 30 and in his prime. They wouldn't have enough time to scale up their rosters to build a contender around him.
19. Hornets
18. Wizards
17. Blazers
16. Jazz
Tier 2: Maybe it could happen
15. Bulls
Giannis has toyed with the idea of playing for the Bulls previously, saying that "it's a no-brainer. Everybody would love to play for Chicago." The United Center is driving distance from his home in Milwaukee, so that transition would not be tough.
The Bulls control all of their draft picks going forward. They have some promising young players, led by Matas Buzelis, Josh Giddey (who will be a restricted free agent), Coby White, and Ayo Dosunmu.
Chicago isn't really at the stage where this would make a ton of sense for Giannis. If he left the Bucks, he'd presumably want to chase a championship. But the Bulls could move all four of their unprotected first-rounders if they wanted to make a godfather type of offer.
14. 76ers
Joel Embiid is a negative asset right now given his shaky health and money owed. The Sixers could send him along with whoever they select with a potential top-five pick in this draft and up to three future first-round picks in exchange for Giannis. They could also move promising rookie Jared McCain, who looked like the best player in his class. Depending on how they fare in the lottery, this could be a decent package.
13. Hawks
The Hawks have a likely future All-Star in Jalen Johnson, along with former No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher and All-Defense guard Dyson Daniels. Those are the types of prospects that the Bucks would be looking for. They also have two unprotected firsts and up to four tradeable first-rounders total. Two of those guys, two picks, and salary filler could form the basis of a competitive package.
Trae Young and Giannis would be an incredible duo. The Hawks would have some issues filling out the rest of their roster, but they haven't been shy about making aggressive trades in the past.
12. Cavs
The Cavs only have one first-rounder to move. They'd have to include one of their young studs — Darius Garland or Evan Mobley — to get a deal like this through.
11. Raptors
The Raptors have control of all of their first-round picks going forward. Scottie Barnes is an attractive young piece that the Bucks would likely be interested in. Toronto could use Barnes and picks as the basis for a package.
It wouldn't make a ton of sense for the Raptors to make an all-in move for Giannis given how far away they are from a title, but they seem to be in win-now mode with their recent trade to acquire Brandon Ingram.
10. Kings
The Kings are another team without a clear direction. Their newly-formed core of Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan, and Zach LaVine hasn't worked well together.
One good thing that the Kings do have going for them is their draft assets. They have five first-rounders that they could move. They could ship out one of their stars along with those picks.
9. Heat
The Heat need to replace Jimmy Butler. They gained some salary flexibility with that trade and have a young All-Star in Tyler Herro that they could move, along with prospects like Jaime Jaquez and Nikola Jokic. Miami also has two unprotected first-rounders and one protected first-rounder.
Herro could go play for his hometown Bucks team and fill the seats there. At 25, he's still young enough to be the centerpiece of a new era in the city.
For the Heat, this would be a no-brainer. Giannis would make the Heat a defensive nightmare and give them the shot creation that they've been missing.
8. Pistons
The Pistons showed that they are a young team worth taking seriously this year. They're still missing that MVP-caliber player next to Cade Cunningham. Giannis could be that guy and seriously accelerate their timeline.
Detroit will have four unprotected firsts that it can move after the draft. They have some interesting young players in Ron Holland, Jalen Duren, Jaden Ivey, and Ausar Thompson. They could include two of those players along with Tobias Harris' salary and several of those picks.
7. Grizzlies
Grizzlies' lead decision maker Zach Kleinman has been honest about the shortcomings of their roster. They need to make a big move.
There's already smoke around a potential Ja Morant trade this summer. If not Ja, then Desmond Bane or Jaren Jackson Jr. could be the centerpieces of a Giannis trade.
Memphis also controls all of its own picks going forward and can include up to four in a trade.
6. Pelicans
New general manager Joe Dumars could make a big splash by making a Zion Williamson-for-Giannis trade. The Bucks would need way more in return.
The Pelicans have four of their own first-rounders to trade, along with the Pacers' 2026 pick. They could add in some young players like Yves Missi or Jordan Hawkins while retaining their core.
Tier 1: The best fits
5. Nets
The Nets have been rumored to be setting up for a Giannis trade for a while. They are one of the only teams with cap space this summer, which could allow them to get the Bucks out of the tax by taking on more salary than they send out.
Brooklyn doesn't have much high-end talent that would entice Milwaukee. Cameron Johnson could be flipped for more assets. Cam Thomas could be included as part of a sign-and-trade.
What the Nets do have are a lot of picks. They can include up to nine first-rounders, eight of which would be unprotected.
4. Magic
The Magic already have two jumbo initiators in Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero. They would have to move one of them in a Giannis trade because the spacing wouldn't work well otherwise.
Giannis is certainly an upgrade right now over either of those players, but that trade would allow the Bucks to reset their timeline. Both Magic forwards could have made the All-Star team if they had better health this season.
The Magic have control of all of their own picks and also will have Denver's No. 25 pick in this upcoming draft. A package built around one of Wagner/Banchero, salary filler, and up to five first-round picks would be a strong one.
3. Spurs
Giannis' timeline doesn't quite line up with Victor Wembanyama's, but Wemby is already a top-10 player. It's never too early to go for it with a guy that good.
The Spurs have young players in Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson that they could use to match Giannis' salary. They also have control of all of their draft picks going forward. They wouldn't want to, but they could include Rookie of the Year winner Stephon Castle if needed.
2. Rockets
The Rockets have a ton of young intriguing players that they could throw in a trade. Amen Thompson hasn't had a great playoffs thus far but looks like a potential star. Reed Sheppard and Cam Whitmore have shown some promise in limited minutes. Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason are already good NBA players. Alperen Sengun made the All-Star game this season.
Houston could pair a handful of those guys with Jalen Green in order to get to Giannis' salary. The big prize would be the five first-rounders that Houston has to offer. It probably wouldn't take all of them to get a deal done, but that trove of assets allows the Rockets to build out the best package of almost anyone.
1. Thunder
The Thunder could build a dynasty that could win the next several championships with Giannis on their team. And they have the pieces to get a deal done without sacrificing any of their main guys.
Oklahoma City should be under the apron, making any trades easier to pull off. They have control of all of their own first-round picks, plus five protected picks that they could move. In addition, they have young pieces, such as No. 12 pick Nikola Topic, Ajay Mitchell, and Cason Wallace, that don't start for them.
The Thunder would probably have to part ways with Isaiah Hartenstein in order to make the money work in a trade, but Giannis could fill those minutes at center. He would fit right in as a defensive menace and give Oklahoma City two of the best scorers in the league.
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