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Making Sense of Desperate Giannis Trade Proposals | Is This the Best We Can Do?



Making Sense of Desperate Giannis Trade Proposals | Is This the Best We Can Do?

On today’s Lockdown Bucks, we take a look at an interesting social post from Giannis, revisit some trade proposals put together by The Athletic, and wonder, has the curse infected other teams? Is this really a thing? Camille and I dig into that coming up after the break here on Locked on Bucks. You are Locked On Bucks, your daily Milwaukee Bucks podcast, part of the Locked On podcast network, your team every day. Welcome in to Locked On Bucks. I’m Justin Garcia, joined as always by Camille Davis. We thank you for making this your first listen each and every day. Today’s episode is brought to you by Monarch Money. Take control of your finances with Monarch Money. Use the code locked on [email protected] for 50% off your first year. Uh Camille, I’m just going to rip the band-aid off. I’m starting to wonder if it’s me because uh we’ve seen countless heartbreaking Packer defeats. You blow a seven-point lead in the final 40 seconds of an overtime game. Uh Yep. Like countless times, my Arizona Wildcats suffered a heartbreak. And then last night, the cherry on top of the Sunday. Not to deviate too much, we’ll leave that to the Lockdown Blues podcast. But uh a twogoal lead with two minutes left and you give up the game time goal with 1.6 seconds left. I think it must be me. And I’m moving closer and closer to being done with sports. Um, one thing that’ll keep me in sports is is Giannis in Milwaukee. Yeah. And as I’m sure everyone has seen by now, there was an Instagram post that Giannis made over the weekend. There was no caption to it, right? No caption, just emojis, just a song attached. And uh, front and center was Giannis with the pregame warm-up shirt of what? play for Cream City or win for Cream City. Cream City. Yeah. Which a lot do not realize Milwaukee is called Cream City. So I was one of those years ago. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it’s reached this point already two, three days into the off season for us. Um, but do you take anything? Is is this Giannis reasserting guys, I’m not leaving? You know, it’s the post on its own. It’s kind of hard to make anything of it. For me, what made it interesting was when the Milwaukee Bucks actually reposted it. And then I said, “Okay, like I’ve seen the Bugs repost certain things from their players, but for a post that has no words, just the the praying hands emoji and the salute emoji and then the Bugs reposted.” I said, “That part of it is kind of interesting because what we do know is that after the season closed, we knew that Giannis was going to be meeting with the front office and they were going to have a conversation about the season, how things went, vision for the future, so on and so forth. So, we don’t know how those talks went at this point. We don’t know any information from those points. All we have seen, honestly, we don’t know if the conversation has happened at this point. Um, what we do know is that he made this post in the, you know, warm-up from this year’s playoffs. The Bucks reposted it and the Bucks reposting it for me was the most interesting part of that of like, did y’all already talk? Do y’all do y’all know something already that we don’t know yet? Because that’s what it seemed like to me. Yeah. Um, it’s fullon hopeium and we’re in the hope portion of this. I I mean I don’t expect I I wouldn’t expect Giannis to come out and say I’m never leaving. I’m never asking for a trade. Milwaukee is my home. Even if he feels that way, you can’t also, right? Like you can’t set yourself up to like, well, wait a minute. You said this a couple weeks ago and be the bad guy there. So, I don’t expect that. But you can do things like this of like, hey, just a reminder, I’m not running from the grind. Like, Milwaukeey’s where I became who I am. This is where I want to be. I understand it’s a very, very tough road ahead. But, you know, as as we also talked about, it doesn’t it doesn’t make it easier necessarily if you just go jump somewhere else. And again, I I think we’ve established and I think most of the people that have have, you know, been on this ride with us and we’ve heard from them in the chat and social posts, I think most Bucks fans, you would be disappointed to not have Giannis in Milwaukee anymore. But they’re not going to hold it against him and they’re going to go with Giannis and say, “Okay, I want to see you succeed where else you go.” But I I just think the lesson that we have learned these last few years and you can even point to something as simple as the Damen Lillard trade is that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to work when you go somewhere else and then have to go through the same thing Dane went to. And obviously wherever Giannis goes in his prime, he’s going to be the guy on that team. But it’s still a feeling out process and it still takes time and chemistry and development. And that’s one of the things where I’m sure is in the back of your mind too of well, wait a minute, is this going to be like a two-year on-ramp where we struggle and don’t really optimize what I have here and then we’re potentially right back in a similar spot of, man, I’m I’m going to be 33 and this hasn’t worked and we’re kind of in a tougher conference if you go to the West or things like that that I think a lot of people overlook and well, you got to get him out of there. He’s lost in the first round three times in a row. Yeah. I mean, your point about Giannis not being someone who generally likes to run from the grind, I think is is it’s an important characteristic trait of Giannis. And it’s not to say that he’ll never leave Milwaukee because that’s in him, but it is to say that I think in this era where you’ve seen a lot more player movement over the last 10, 15 years, uh for Giannis, he’s always kind of does a badge of honor to be like, well, you know, I’m in Milwaukee. And I think the best point that you made so far was just around the idea of if you do go somewhere else. There is no guarantee that it will work. There is no guarantee that you will be able to have uh the same control over the game necessarily that you do here in Milwaukee. And to that I mean you’ve heard other point guards Jeff Teague is one of them although Jeff Teague be talking but just saying how it’s it’s different as a point guard to play next to Giannis because you’re you’re not able to be the full point guard all the time because Giannis does like to initiate the offense and bring the ball up and based on what he said after this last series ended with him being more interested in having the ball even more going forward. It’s like how many situations can you walk right into and they were kind of like all right we’re going to completely change this up and I know you mentioned like he’s going to be the best player wherever he goes but as we saw with this Damen Lillard transition like it can be difficult when you’re used to being the number one person at a in a franchise and you go to a new place where you have to get to know everyone get to know how everything operates and then try to exert yourself as the number one dog like it’s hard sometimes to walk into a new locker room and do that but you Giannis is giving us uh some some things to read into right now with that Instagram post. I forget who it was too that um uh it wasn’t Nick, right? But somebody over the weekend had said here here’s here’s the sales pitch to Giannis to if you’re the Bucks and stay in Milwaukee, you run the team. Like this is your team and everything revolves around you. Not to make that come off negative and and sound well selfish, you know, but like you’re the guy here and you have input on personnel decisions, the way that we’re going to tailor our offense as we saw the tail end of the season. Like all that’s through you, it’ll probably be close or maybe even the same thing wherever he would go given he is at worst one of the three best players in the league right now, if not the best. Um, but it’s the old adage too of hey, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. And I’ll I’ll say this too, Camille, not to get uh too far into forecasting, but let’s say you bring back most of this group, if not all of the guys that you can control to bring back, and obviously that includes Giannis. Um, I think number one, we’re we’re starting to get over the fatigue. And as we saw the last what 12 or so games of the regular season, I I think if if you bring back most of this group, next year is the year where I’m not saying he’s going to win it, but you hear a lot more of Giannis MVP chatter because he’s going to have to play that way and take on the Nicola Joic role and we saw how well that worked out down the stretch. So that’s one of the other things of look this is how you rise from the ashes and it’s not to say the Bucks well that’s how they win a championship and they’ll be in that contention because I think the other thing we know is barring something unforeseen even if you bring back not bring back but Giannis is still here you bring back guys that were impactful like Gary Trent Jr. and Kevin Porter Jr. and you’re able to do some other things the Bucks are going to be on no one’s radar next year when you talk about who’s winning the Eastern Conference. Shoot. I mean, every year since they’ve won a championship that that has gotten less and less and less of people being like, “Yeah, the Bugs. Yeah, the Bucks.” Like, even coming into this season, there were a lot of people that wrote off the Milwaukee Bucks based on them having lost in the first round two years in a row. So, I can only imagine what that conversation is going to be like this summer as a Milwaukee Bucks team that has been ousted in the first round three years in a row now, twice by that very same Indiana Pacers team. So, like the perception of the team, I think, going into next year, unless there’s a crazy move this off season is going to be lower than Bucks fans have gotten used to over the last few years, which is also part of the reason why when you have the conversation around should the Bucks look to move Giannis, should the Bucks look to retain Giannis, which has been all of the conversation even before the Bucks exited the playoffs. Um the what you have to think about is what it means to actually make either one of those decisions and where that puts your franchise going forward. All right. There were a couple of mock trades put together by the Athletic and shouts to our our pal Eric Name for doing the Lord’s work and pushing back on these. Um so we’ll revisit those and why as we’ve already seen a couple of comments pour in of aren’t we just prolonging things? Why wouldn’t you trade Giannis now and just start the rebuild? why it’s not quite that simple. So, we’ll dig into that the trade landscape for the Bucks and for Giannis Adakmpo and and why I think we’re aligned here, Camille, and that you’re still not going to put me on board with the right thing to do is to trade Giannis this summer. So, we’ll dig into that conversation coming up next on Lockdown Bucks. This next segment of Lockdown Bucks is sponsored by Better Help. The world has made a lot of progress when it comes to mental health, but there’s still a long way to go. Too many people still avoid therapy because they’re afraid of being judged. But the truth is, taking care of your mental health should be just as normal as going to the gym or eating healthy. This mental health awareness month, let’s normalize getting help and encourage everyone to prioritize their well-being. Because when people feel supported, families, workplaces, and entire communities are better for it. We’re all better with help. Visit betterhelp.com/lockedonba to get 10% off your first month. It’s betterhelp hp.com/lockedonba. So, the Athletic uh put together a list of mock trades for Giannis Adakmpo and uh this was Eric Name involved is basically the final say. What do you think about this? um David Aldridge, Sam Vini, and then a couple others that have connections to covering at least one of those teams that were mentioned uh in potential trades here. So, Eric Corine, who’s uh been a longtime reporter for the Toronto Raptors, and Tony Jones, who’s taken on a number of teams through the years, but uh let’s take a look at these four proposals that were put together. And I think the first thing that uh when that comes across your desk as a Bucks fan, you just think, “God, already like here we go again.” Uh let’s start with the first one. Giannis Dakmpo goes to the San Antonio Spurs to uh round out the super team of Giannis, Victor Wanyama, and um I suppose Darren Fox if we’re going to say super team. And it’s a three-team trade involving the Bucks and the New Orleans Pelicans. So, the Spurs get Giannis, the Pels get Devin Vel, Jeremy Sohan, Pat Conetan, and a 2027 first round pick from the Spurs. The Bucks get Zion Williamson, Kell Johnson, a 2025 first round pick, which would belong come from the Atlanta Hawks via the Spurs. Uh 2027 first round pick swap rights from the Pelicans. So, um, you you get one of the off years back if you’re the Bucks and a 2029 first round pick coming from the Spurs. I had an initial thought when someone else sent that to me and I wasn’t aware it came from the Athletic, but um, what say you, your initial reaction upon seeing that proposal? My initial reaction um is that I would like more of the Bucks picks back please New Orleans if we’re doing that because um part of when you you know you trade a franchise icon uh your team’s probably going to be bad for a while and you you want to be bad and have your own picks and the Pelicans would still have quite a few of those Milwaukee Bucks picks even though they give one back in the swap but like no that’s where I first started is with the assets then you get to the Zion Williamson part, which sure if this was a few years ago, like when he was still a rookie uh before all the injury news and whatnot hit for Zion, then like I could probably be bit intrigued by that. Like I know he’s still young, but he has just not been healthy and the way that Bucks fans uh were on the back of Mr. Chris Middleton for the various injuries that he had and he was serving as a second at times third option for this team. Um I would not want to have to put my faith um in somebody who is also a bit injuryprone as the number one option for this team going forward. A bit. Okay. I’m doing um my initial reaction was uh I I’m not even letting you finish this set. like we’re hanging up the phone now. Zion Williamson’s played 200 games in six years. This is the last this is the last year of his deal. So, you’re bringing on a guy that has not shown you consistently the ability to stay on the floor. And then you’re also putting the unenviable task of having to pay him this summer when maybe you see more of the same and it’s 40 games from Zion Williamson. The 40 look great, but it’s 40 games played. uh the picks that you mentioned as well. So you you would get a pick swap from the Pelicans in 2027 while you still owe your 2027 to New Orleans. So it’s Yeah. Like no, we’re good here. Um the rest of it to a 2029 first round pick from the San Antonio Spurs. If the Spurs have Giannis and WBY, the Spurs are going to be good for the next seven or so years. So that pick is meaningless. It means nothing to you. Uh Kell Johnson’s a fine player, right? But what does Kell Johnson do for you at that point when you trade Giannis and oh, you can trade him and get more assets? Fine. But then we’re just continuing to kick a can down the road here. This was a total non-starter for me and laughably bad that a staff as um as good, frankly, as the Athletic could come up with a trade like this. And as as Eric pointed out in his analysis, this is nowhere near enough for Giannis and and pointed to all the things that we mentioned as well, the games played, uh the types of picks that you would need, the Pelicans owning, you know, 2026 and 27 first rounders for the Bucks that you need to get that back as a starting point. So this one, 0% chance that happens. And if that if a trade like that were to happen, for all the talk of what’s the conspiracy, you know, with with Nico making that trade and did the league step in and say get Luca to Los Angeles, I’m not a conspiracy theorist, Camille. If that trade were to happen, then I am fully on board and saying, “Let’s start an investigation. Why are we sending Luca to Los Angeles and Giannis to pair up with with Victor Wimpyama?” So, yes, this one starts things off laughably bad. There’s three more and we’ll run through them quickly here. Uh, another one pretty bad in my eyes. The Bucks Siannis, you ready for this? To the Philadelphia 76ers for Paul George, Jared McCain, their 2025 first round pick, which may end up being good. It could uh 2028 firstrounder through the Los Angeles Clippers and a uh 2030 first rounder and a 2029 pick swap. Um, in terms of draft capital, not bad, right? like I I’ll bet on maybe the the Sixers win the lottery. Um at least it’s in the top three, four picks there this summer that you get kicking the can down the road and an older Clippers team. We’ll take some of those picks and pick swaps. I get that. But Jared McCain, a nice player, might have been the rookie of the year if he didn’t get hurt. I think that more speaks to what this rookie class was. If you’re trading Giannis, I’m not taking on Paul George’s contract. Like that’s a clear sign to rebuild that part. And if you’re trying to trade Paul George for Giannis, I get that Jerick McCain is like a little bit of a sweetener in there because he’s a young guy that showed potential, but like Paul George about to be like 35, 36, like pushing 40 with this contract that he has here and he already showed this past year. Um, well, and the games played are almost identical to Joel Embiid during that same span. I’m not I’m not in like you hung up quickly on the the Pelicans. I’m hanging up quickly on the Sixers because how dare you and how do you not also give us like three more draft picks here to try to take on Paul George for Giannis who is still in his prime. Like I’m not I’m not interested in that one at all. At all. This one better or worse than the Spurs one? I think this is actually worse than I would almost say worse. Yeah, because you’re taking on an anchor of three more years of that Paul George contract. And basing it off the first year, I don’t think that one is going to age well. Uh, two more to run through here. So, Giannis to the Raptors where the Raptors get Giannis and Kyle Koosma. The Bucks get Scotty Barnes, RJ Barrett, Grady Dick, and 2027, 2029, 2031 first round picks. all top one protected 2028 and 2030 pick swaps. So, I think we’re getting closer there. Um, in terms of the draft capital that you would get, Scotty Barnes, a nice player. Scotty Barnes is never going to be the best player on a good team. He’s ideally probably your third guy. Like, when you look back at the Bucks with Giannis and Chris and uh Drew Holiday, he’s, you know, probably the third guy in that mix, that type of role that he’s filling up for a good team. But you’re getting a ton of draft capital. I think the only thing that struck me with it, and Eric points this one out as well, uh, yeah, there will be no pick protections on anything we’re taking back if we’re trading Giannis. So, you give us all those picks and you live with it. Yeah. I I mean, it of the three that we’ve talked about so far, that’s been the the most intriguing trade. Still not enough for me personally. Um, but you’re you’re getting in the right direction. And I believe in the article, Eric pointed out the fact that uh the Knicks sent out four first to get Bridges back. And like yes, you can point out that’s an overpay for Muel Bridges. But like overpay, but but if that’s what Bridges is getting, like if I have to Giannis, I am I am driving a hard bargain. Like I’m going to need four, five, I’m gonna need some assets here. Like that’s closer, but I’m still not on board with that one. There’s one more trade to get to we’ll get to in the next segment. But that what you brought up is the other piece of this is we’ve seen overpays and I think there’s a tendency from a lot of teams now to to recognize that and say, “Yeah, uh, gave up too much for Bridges in the player that he is.” I know that the Timberwolves are finding a lot more success now. And there’s a lot of people that want revisionist history and say, “Well, not a bad trade now after all, is it? It’s still a ton you gave up for Rudy Goar.” But I think there’s a lot of these teams that are saying we’re not doing that again. And if you’re the Bucks, it’s precedent’s been set. You are doing that or we’re not moving it. So that’s the stalemate that I think we are potentially in for if this does in fact become a thing this summer. But there is one other trade that is also intriguing, but I it’s not quite there, not fully baked. So we’ll we’ll run through that one. and one of the trends that has started to take place with this Bucks team in the postseason. We’ll dig into that next on Locked on Bucks. Time now to talk to you about our friends at Monarch Money. If you’ve ever checked your bank account and wondered where all of your money went between dining out, online shopping, and entertainment, it can be easy to lose track of those things. 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All right, one more of these mock trade proposals to get through here, Camille, and get your reaction to uh one that I think is going to pick up a lot of steam. Not like this trade per se, but this team, the Houston Rockets, and this one was a three-team deal between the Bucks, the Rockets, and the Portland Trailblazers. The Rockets get Giannis and Jeremy Grant. The Blazers get Alper and Shenon and Jock Landale. And the Bucks would get Aean Thompson, Jaylen Green, Cam Whitmore, Donovan Klingan from the Blazers, a 2025 first from the Phoenix Suns. 2027 first from the Phoenix Suns. 2029 first uh the most favorable between the Bucks, the Blazers or the Wizards. 2028 and 2030 pick swaps the Bucks gave to the Blazers in that Dame trade would be wiped out. So, you would at least recoup some of that and you’re betting against the Phoenix Suns to go nuclear here. Um although those picks not as good as they once were because of some of the other moves that the Suns made along the way trying to what turn a dollar into three quarters basically, but you’re getting something back. And more importantly, you’re also getting young players, especially someone like Thompson. Not sure about Jaylen Green after this series, but what Thompson has showed this season and certainly in the playoffs. Yeah, I’m a bit lower on Jaylen Green now, but even higher on Thompson than I was before, I think that kid is going to be a star. But I mean, again, you’re getting this is the closest one. It felt like every trade uh proposal, mock trade proposal got a bit closer uh to what it is that it would actually need for the Bucks to to actually trade Giannis. I would actually want like another draft asset in that at the very least. But like it’s it’s getting there. And even with that, like I still I still wouldn’t do it unless Giannis himself said, “I want to be out of here.” which as we started the show off with talking about what the Instagram post might mean from Giannis, like I just when you make a decision to trade a franchise cornerstone like Giannis, when you make a decision to trade one of the best players in the league, one of the best players in league history at this point, uh, for Giannis, you’re never going to get back what you sent out because it it’s just hard to recoup that type of talent. Um, I said it before and every day remember this from last week, but when you go this route of a rebuild, you’re selling hope. It’s just hope that we can be better. Um, and sometimes you can sell hope a lot easier than, hey, if we keep this core together, we’re just fighting to stay off the plan. Like our goal is to remain top six. Like it’s a different type of sales pitch there. And honestly, I still I still would rather have Giannis over any of those trade packages we just discussed. They’re they’re all bad. And I think that’s uh not bad, but they’re not there. That they’re not Yeah, it’s not enough. Um we’ve seen two that you’re all right, we’re getting there, but it’s not enough. And um you know, I think a few people have brought this up in the comments today, but it’s one of the bigger reasons for me to say, guys, I’m I don’t think and and I’ll be clear here. I think the majority of Bucks fans are not pushing for a Giannis trade and are saying if he asks for a trade, we owe it to him. Then fine, I’m I’ll go along with it. But we’ve seen a very small uh portion of the audience say not working. Time to rebuild and just get pics. I will never subscribe to that theory because number one, do we not remember what this was like before 2014, 2013? Yeah. I mean, you and I, a lot of people in the chat, a lot of the everydays do remember it. But I I just think number one, there’s a lot of newer Bucks fans that came along for the ride in the BUD era and like, hey, this team’s good now. I’m going to pay attention and I’m a longtime Bucks fan. We know you’re not. It’s it’s we we know who is here and we know there’s a lot of people when you get in the room and look around like, I don’t remember seeing you at the last meeting. Okay. Um, it was not pretty. I I I remember going to the Bradley Center a lot. You know why? It was easy to get tickets and they were cheap because it was not a good team and there was not you you went to the Bradley Center to see other teams. Milwaukee was a wasteland when it came to basketball and this one guy came along and changed it. And yes, you changed a lot. You built your culture. You started to develop other guys and you became relevant. It’s not to say as soon as he leaves that’s gone, but there’s a chance all of that is gone and you’re right back to where you were before. Now, I will say this, it’s a much different landscape in the NBA where the other thing the Bucks are up against, there wasn’t things like aprons in the way that we’ve seen more parody come into play here where teams have chances now, but it’s still a lot different when you don’t have one of those guys. And to talk about picks, we’ll just get picks. The Oklahoma City Thunder right now are the only team that we have seen consistently turn those picks into players. Look at the Utah Jazz. They’re in the process of a long rebuild. This is what Well, not too long, but it’s going to be long. This is what, year three of that. You got them. They’re just beginning. Yeah. And they got picks and you just kind of All right, let’s get more picks and let’s trade this guy for picks. It doesn’t always pan out. Picks don’t play in games. It’s the guys that you draft that play in the games and you don’t know what happens there. So, I’m never going to say the best thing to do is just trade Giannis for a bunch of picks because of that and because of the fact that look, if you trade Giannis in any of those packages, if you get back okay picks that are going to be well, it’s a chance that this is a top 10 pick, it’s not doing anything for you when you owe your future capital to, you know, the the Pelicans and the Blazers for the next five years. So, you’re making yourself worse and in turn making those picks better and making other teams better while you’re just kind of recouping half of what you would have had here. And the tough part for the Bucks is any move where you do this, you would be best served to target a team and say, “We’ll take your picks in 2031, like 2030, 2032. Like, those are the picks that we want. But again, as we just mentioned, you don’t have any assets for the next few years. So that is what makes it even uglier. Yeah. We’re going to be bad and we got nothing to show for it. You’re basically going to be the Nets from a decade ago. Yeah. Where you don’t have control of your pick. So you being bad does not help your team in any way, shape, or form. It It’s a tough situation. I I agree with you um and where you stand on the whole concept of why we’re not a fan of the idea of trading Giannis at this point. And what I’ll add to that is even if you have a high draft pick, like the Bucks, we were just there when we drafted Jabari Parker and all the hope that came along with that and if those injuries didn’t happen, who knows what could have been, but they did happen. And just because you have the high draft pick does not mean that it’s going to work out. I mean, there I see the comments often uh when Horus got his extension, people upset that John Horse was was still here and pointing to his draft record and it’s like, okay, so you want picks. Exactly. If that’s how you feel that he’s not good at at drafting, then then what what does this mean? But it is what it is. I I’ve made my stance clear and I know this will not be the last conversation we have about Giannis and possibly being moved because that is going to be a big conversation this summer. But um just for the everydayers to understand my positioning, I would not trade Giannis unless he asked to be traded. And even then, I would try to convince him like, are you sure? You sure you want to do this? Um but yeah, that that’s where I stand on it. Um, and the comparisons too of we’re not Utah. I think it’s closer than you think. Like the difference between the Bucks and the Jazz, you won a championship. You had Giannis, but the Jazz won their division, what, three out of five years in that stretch. The Bucks was obviously five straight, but the Jazz would constantly get to the semifinals and lose to a better team. They had that core together and then ultimately just decided it’s time to blow this thing up and and start to rebuild. And look, if it’s I I don’t mean this to sound negative, but it’s not for if it’s not for winning the championship. Yeah. There isn’t a whole lot of difference between you and the Jazz when you look at losing in the second round to the Heat, losing in the first round three years in a row. Um that that’s just been the story. And I know you had a conference finals the first year of the Bud era, but it’s a closer comparison than I think than people think. So, it’s certainly something that’s not going to go away and is going to be a heavy talking point all throughout the summer here. Um, there’s one other thing we wanted to to mention in terms of playoff and similarities, but we’re already up against the clock here. So, we’ll save that for tomorrow’s show. As you look at, man, look at the results. And I know there’s a long way to go. Game one between the Pacers and Cavs. Is there a trend that’s setting in here for the Bucks that we’ve seen with some other teams throughout the state? So, we’ll we’ll get into that conversation here probably on tomorrow’s show. That’ll do it for today’s show. Let us know your thoughts in the comments on those trade proposals that we went through. I would assume we’re all aligned here in the Bucks fans feelings on that. Uh that’ll do it for today for Camille. I’m Justin. We’ll talk with you guys once again tomorrow on Locked on Bucks.

Is Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Future with the Milwaukee Bucks in Jeopardy? The Milwaukee Bucks’ star player, Giannis Antetokounmpo, has sparked speculation with a recent social media post, leaving fans wondering about his commitment to the team. As trade rumors swirl, the Bucks face critical decisions that could reshape their future in the NBA.

Join hosts Justin Garcia and Camille Davis as they dissect potential trade scenarios for Giannis, evaluating proposals from teams like the San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers. They explore the challenges of rebuilding through draft picks and the implications of recent playoff performances. With a focus on Giannis’ value to the franchise, the discussion offers a deep dive into the Bucks’ strategic options.

Will the Bucks hold onto their MVP, or is a blockbuster trade on the horizon? Tune in for an insightful analysis of the Milwaukee Bucks’ path forward.

0:00 Intro: Giannis’ social media post and trade rumors
5:40 Giannis’ loyalty and challenges of changing teams
10:44 Analyzing mock trades for Giannis Antetokounmpo
16:58 More trade proposals, including Sixers and Raptors
21:56 Final trade proposal and financial planning advice
25:57 Why trading Giannis may not be the answer
31:16 Comparing Bucks’ situation to Utah Jazz rebuild

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29 Comments

  1. Bucks Fan crying giannis is 30. And his time is running out. DUDE. KOBE and Jordan won back 2 back Titel when they were 31-32. Giannis is fine. This off season needs proper gameplanning and Proper roll players who know their role. We need a point guard!!

  2. 27:21 Justin speaking facts rn, People don’t know the pain of being excited to watch OJ mayo, Caron Butler, Brandon Knight Hoops or back when I thought BJ & Monte was gone take us all the way to the chip. I don’t think people understood the dark past we had before GA & Khris became the legends that they are. I get it I want the best for GA too, I want GA to win another chip. But bruh if he ain’t asking for a trade then just build around him per usual. Steph had to go through the rebuilding phase too after 2019, Steph still going through it, Steph had went and got a chip in 2022 with a retooled team.

  3. This is my opinion on the Giannis trade packages that you discussed:
    1. SAN/NOL: we would need to get back both Bucks 2026 and 2027 pick swaps for this trade to work. Also I would want Stephon Castle back in the trade.
    2. Philadelphia: I would want Tyrese Maxey back, which kind of defeats the whole purpose of the trade from Philadelphia's point of view. their draft picks could be valuable as some of those clippers picks in 2028 and 2029 could be in the lottery. McCain's
    3. Toronto is not happening as Giannis would not want to play in Toronto and their roster is not good enough to contend right now.
    4. The Rockets package was probably the one I like the most out of the 4.

  4. Giannis averaged 31/11/8 while going 11-5 in games without Dame this season. If he could maintain that level of production while securing a top 6 seed, he will be the MVP.

    If Giannis does this, he will have the record for longest gap between two MVP awards in history.

  5. I think Giannis realizes no matter where he goes, they are going to have to rebuild around him. Meaning asking your number 1 to step down to 2 or may even be traded, have to completely rebuild your team around him. Then the pressure for the fans to realize because of this it may not be a chip in year one or two. And ultimately if that team does not do better than the bucks with Giannis then what then?

  6. The #1 reason thus situation is happening is because the Bucks foolishly let Jrue Holiday go. It was over then.

  7. The bucks fans the type to keep GA just to keep him & don’t want to see him win the chip, gotta let him go sooner or later

  8. Very few if any trades will benefit the bucks. Teams either A offer trash and five years of draft picks. The bucks then suck and give away lottery picks to get back late first rounders. Bad. Or B take several very good players from a team and tear apart their core which makes no sense for the other team as they are left with just Giannis. So any trade is likely bad for everyone.

  9. Perhaps the lyrics of the song Giannis has chosen in the post, bears its significance of how he feels: (alitiki agapi)

    You grew up alone in the neighborhoods where you had to take care of everything
    You were marked by passions and invisible scars and the only love you have is a vagabond
    The years have passed and despite the changes you are still that child who endures
    And sometimes she forgets the flowers at the holidays, the only love she has is a vagabond

    Verse 1
    I am selfish or me or nobody
    I never think about how you will feel
    I am chasing records, this is what sport has me
    I want a championship cup and ten Ballon d'Or
    Ten after twenty-three I complete
    One for each year of my presence in the space
    At least four, one for each seed
    To have four hands to hold like Goro
    I live from the street and I think it's from him
    I'm on the tour with Squeezy at night on the national road
    But home isn't home if you're not too
    And let the Airbnb have a view of the Acropolis
    I'll download the moon to bring you close
    As for me, I will shop for overalls and sports
    And you will be afraid when you see the prices of them
    Don't stop loving only that brings money
    It's not hard for a man to lose his way
    Especially when he's not looking over his shoulder
    My uncle used to tell me you like his rush
    Fuck the world till he enter its soil
    In the neighborhood pubs with the cheap resins
    The clubs where the curtains are dirty with cigarettes
    In the houses without electricity and crawling babies
    Whatever cross we carry we all love something
    We didn't all grow up with holidays in the winter
    With family tables and colored sheets
    Their children's parties had other balloons
    Everyone wants care and let them grow up in welfare (Okay)
    Who doesn't want the new consoles
    The houses with a view of juicier steaks
    Who wouldn't want his star to shine
    If he hears us raise his hand
    Analyzing images is my secret
    I had a De Niro poster back in my native
    I was talking to the mirror like I was seeing my enemy
    I was looking for smoke in the sewer grate
    The only love we have is this
    Whoever has it he keeps her like his treasure
    And he always says to those he is with
    Fuck the world until you enter its soil

    Outro
    You grew up alone in the neighborhoods where you had to take care of everything
    You were marked by passions and invisible scars and the only love you have is a vagabond
    The years have passed and despite the changes you are still that child who endures
    And sometimes he forgets the flowers at the holidays, the only love he has is a vagabond

  10. We truly love and follow Giannis, no matter. He’s a great man and bb GOAT, and he deserves only to be happy. I’m more than sure that he’ll consider also what’s best for his Cream City & Fans in his ultimate decision for next year. Giannis you’re the man bro.

  11. I think it's malpractice that Hurst got an extension. And I literally think Doc is one of the worst coaches in the league. That being said you'd have to be stupid to let Giannis antetokounmpo walk unless he's demanding it. Whoever watched the teams before Giannis and Chris came to stardom know how painful it can be for a small market bad weather team. If he leaves dark dark dark dark dark dark dark times are ahead

  12. Bring back the players who looked good this year: Trent, Green, KPJ, Sims with Giannis. Get rid of the old junk and try to get 1-2 solid players out of it. Build out the rest of the bench with young players. Youll still be a playoff team. This isnt rocket science, the Bucks are better with Giannis. You dont trade him unless he demands out and then you get a ton to rebuild with.😊

  13. as a spurs fan, what if the spurs 2025 pick jump to the number 2 pick, and we'll trade the 2nd pick, sochan, vassel, keldon johnson, and like 4 frp and some swaps, you ll get dylan harper which could be your next franchise star

  14. Here's facts. CBS Sports now reporting that GA was on his brother's podcast talking about how much he loves Milwaukee and the people and doesn't want to leave. I believe him. He also says he would feel incomplete if he finished his hall of fame career and didn't win another ring. I believe him. He ALSO said that he wants to bring another ring to Milwaukee and will do whatever it takes to win. I don't believe him. I get sick of NBA superstars going on about how much they want to win and will do whatever they need to win but at the same time are now demanding salaries of $60MM/year. Do you know what the NBA minimum for a player with GA's years of service is? $3.3MM. You could assemble the greatest team of all time if these bigmouths would actually do what they SAY they are willing to do. Boston Celtics in two years will not even resemble this year's team because they will have to start shedding players because they are all good and want to "get paid". Tatum next year will get a huge raise and basically kill his team along with what they pay Brown. Bunch of rich hypocrites. Don't believe them.

  15. Now i need every major network to talk about that! Now stop the BS, had he post anything for them to run with THEY WOULD

  16. I don’t think GA will be traded. Guy loves your city. I hope he retires there, would be so cool to see.

  17. A Gianni's trade is not a thing. There is no evidence that either party wants to go their separate ways. This literally is fake news.
    When something real is leaked or one of the parties says they are looking at a trade, then it will be a story.

  18. We just need to build smarter around Giannis in my opinion Dame was never that guy, you see that at the end of the season when Giannis flat out said he feels better with the ball in his hands. We need guys like Alex Carouso or TJ McConnel, along side people like Gary Trent and AJ Green, we need guys that are going to embrace deferring to Giannis and knocking down shots and being a problem on defense. Grayson Allen, Dante, great fits – the only retool we should have been doing was a 3 that can create like prime Khris. Package up Brooke and sadly Bobby – they both slow us down too much, let's build a team that runs like Giannis wants to run.

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