Giannis Antetokounmpo appears to be taking some first steps toward an exit from the Milwaukee Bucks as he enters the 2025-26 season with a level of hope that their reshaped roster can make them again in a depleted Eastern Conference. There is belief around the NBA that Antetokounmpo will eventually be traded, but it became clear that the parties involved in the situation were unwilling to do so during the 2025 offseason.
“There has been an expectation for some time that Giannis’ days in Milwaukee are somehow numbered,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said today on NBA. “Whether that might happen this year, whether it might happen during this season, or whether it might happen next summer.
“And when you get situations like this, I find it very useful to focus on actions over words. Let’s look at the actions of the parties we discussed here,” Windhorst continued.
“The Milwaukee Bucks waived and extended Damian Lillard. That cost them $100 million in dead money on their books. Then they spent an additional $100 million this summer to sign Myles Turner. Those are not the actions of a team about to trade the best player they’ve had since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
“Then you look at the New York Knicks. They clearly knew it was possible Giannis would be available. We saw a possible move this summer with the idea that Giannis could be available. So the idea that you wouldn’t prepare for this kind of phone call, that’s not true. Guess they were able to make this kind of trade right now.
“And let’s get to Giannis. If you want to be traded as a star player making over $50 million a year in the apron era, especially if you have a small roster of teams you want to be traded to, you don’t ask for a trade or discuss a trade in August.
“So I certainly think the actions we’re seeing at some point Giannis could be discussed again with the Knicks or elsewhere, but I look at the actions here and I don’t think they would ever lead to a New York-Milwaukee deal in the summer.”
Antetokounmpo will be eligible for a four-year, $275 million extension on October 1, 2026. Antetokounmpo could become a free agent for the first time in his career in 2027 if he does not sign an extension.
Antetokounmpo has finished top-5 in MVP voting for seven straight seasons.
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