As the NBA playoffs continue on into mid-June, one team that was eliminated in the first round had its future blurred a little bit on Monday morning.
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo is "open-minded" about the possibility of playing elsewhere next season. The two-time NBA MVP is tied to the Bucks through 2027—with a player option in '28—but "has not made any firm decisions" on his future in Milwaukee after their third-consecutive first-round playoff exit last month.
Following up on the news, ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst joined Get Up! to explain how a trade for Giannis could work in the current NBA landscape. In doing so, he suggested four teams who could big for The Greek Freak:
"The Bucks do not control their first-round pick for five years," Windy explained. "That means if the Bucks are gonna trade him, thinking they're gonna tank for the next three years and rebuild, that's not gonna happen. They need quality players. And the other thing that you need to know is, if you're gonna trade Giannis to a team ... getting [their] draft assets is not exciting because they're not gonna be very high picks for the next few years."
.@WindhorstESPN details how a Giannis trade might be possible and which teams to watch out for ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/9HCydYW1VZ
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) May 12, 2025
"San Antonio and Houston. San Antonio and Houston. San Antonio and Houston," he continued on repeat. "Pay attention there. And the other [team] is Brooklyn, because Brooklyn has Phoenix's future drafts, but Brooklyn's current players, not that strong. Not that exciting of a player acquisition [as the Spurs and the Rockets]. The other team to watch? The New Orleans Pelicans ... Because the New Orleans Pelicans control the next three drafts of the Milwaukee Bucks."
Ladies and gentlemen, we are officially on #GiannisWatch with just about a month still to go in the NBA playoffs.
In addition to the aforementioned postseason, the NBA Draft Lottery will be held on Monday night on ESPN—lending some more clarification as to where Giannis could potentially end up in 2025-26.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Giannis Watch: NBA Insider Reveals Four Teams That Could Target Bucks Star .
