Trading Giannis Antetokounmpo Isn’t So Simple for the Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks are entering the offseason at a major inflection point. More specifically, what does the future hold for the franchise’s cornerstone in Giannis Antetokounmpo?

Throughout this past season, conflicting reports suggest it will go either way.

The Bucks, soon to be six years removed from their 2021 title team, are getting older, more expensive, and worse. Milwaukee just finished 2025-26 with 32 wins. They haven’t finished with fewer than 40 wins since 2015-16, when Giannis was only in his third season.

While the team could turn it around with the superstar on the team, there’s still plenty of uncertainty going forward. That said, even if the Bucks were willing to move on from Giannis during this summer, it’s going to be no walk in the park— no matter how many times Shams Charania tweets something “different” about The Greek Freak.

Mounting Concerns With Giannis

Clearly, Giannis Antetokounmpo remains one of the top players in the league. Ever since the 2018-19 campaign, Giannis has remained a top-five fixture on the MVP ballot. He continues to be a dominant scorer and a total freak of nature on the court. For the Bucks, he is and will be the only reason the team can win going forward.

For other teams, however, there will definitely be some pause.

The first and most notable worry is Giannis’ durability on the court.

Since 2019-20, Giannis has played 70 games or more just once (2024). He’s also coming off a year where he played just 36 games due to various injuries. In the last seven years, he’s averaged around 61 games per season. Essentially, a team must count on him being out for 25% of its season, at least according to the numbers.

Considering Giannis is at the tail end of his prime, other teams will also take note. For 2026-27, he will be entering his age-32 season. There will also be concern about whether he can make it to the playoffs and stay intact during them.

Then, there’s the fit on the team. Again, Giannis is a legit superstar, but his defense has waned in recent years, and he plays predominantly on the interior offensively. A successful roster around him includes playing with another floor-spacing big, preferably at the five. Giannis is also quite ball-dominant, meaning the perimeter supporting cast needs to be good scorers but also avoid being too ball-dominant.

Plenty of teams would want Giannis in a heartbeat. Fitting him with the rest of what’s left of the roster after trading for Giannis is where there will be some questions.

All that said, Giannis still averaged 28 points and 10 rebounds in under 29 minutes per game this past season.

A Complicated Deadline Looms

This critical deadline would be October 1. It’s a key date many Milwaukee Bucks fans are keeping in mind.

For context, Giannis is entering the final guaranteed year of his contract. He possesses the choice to pick up his player option for the 2027-28 season at just below $63 million, his age-33 season.

Giannis would be eligible to sign an extension in October to remain with Milwaukee. But this comes with immense risk for the franchise.

October, of course, comes months after the draft and free agency, when teams have the most flexibility to make a move of this caliber, like trading for Giannis.

It’s a timeline Bucks’ ownership and management are clearly taking note of.

“Before the draft is a natural time, right? Because if Giannis does play somewhere else, then we ought to get a lot of assets, and that’s John’s job to do,” Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam recently told reporters. “If he’s here, then you build the team differently.”

The broad concern many Bucks fans may have is that the team makes “panic” moves this offseason to try to keep him, only for him not to sign the extension. By October 1, Giannis may still not even publicly demand a trade. But not signing the extension would be a clear indicator that the end is near.

Furthermore, if it gets to that point, it might be harder for the franchise to ship off the superstar. Other teams will not wait around to improve or make roster decisions.

The Bucks’ One Major Hope

Desperation. NBA history says a lot about this: if a superstar wants out, it will happen. That could very well happen in Giannis Antetokounmpo’s case.

If the Cleveland Cavaliers flame out of the playoffs, does it put Evan Mobley on the table? The same can be said for the Detroit Pistons. Out West, the San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets, and Oklahoma City Thunder can all theoretically put together great packages. There will be suitors.

Also, this could even become a Kawhi Leonard to Toronto situation, where a franchise might convince itself it’s worth having a perennial MVP candidate like Giannis for just one year.

Looking ahead, trading Giannis makes sense for both sides. He wants to maximize his basketball prime, compete at the highest level, and win titles. The problem: he doesn’t want to break Milwaukee fans’ hearts. That said, the team needs a reset, and trading Giannis for the best possible value makes the most sense.

The challenge is overcoming the waves, which could make that difficult, in hopes of landing on the beach and in one piece.