Both the New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks are free-falling. Two teams with high expectations, for different reasons, have underwhelmed by the season’s halfway point.
A few months back, these two teams were the topic of the NBA world when it was reported that if Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo were to ask out of Milwaukee, he’d like to be traded to New York.
The two sides talked, per multiple league sources, but nothing of much substance materialized.
With the NBA’s Feb. 5 trade deadline nearing and both the Knicks and Bucks going down the standings as opposed to up, the question is simple: Does an Antetokounmpo-and-Knicks trade now make any sense?
To discuss, The Athletic’s Bucks beat writer Eric Nehm and Knicks beat writer James L. Edwards III go back and forth on the possibility and if it makes any sense ahead of the trade deadline.
Do the Knicks want Giannis right now?
Edwards: The Knicks were and will continue to be interested in Giannis. Why shouldn’t they be? He’s, arguably, the best player in the conference.
While I do believe New York thought it had enough to win an NBA title without him, I wonder if those feelings have changed as of late. The Knicks, at the very least, have to make the NBA Finals, a mandate said publicly by owner James Dolan recently. Over the last month, though, New York hasn’t looked anything like the best one, two, three, four or five teams in the East, let alone possible champions.
So, yes, the Knicks should want Giannis right now. Something isn’t right with this team. The pieces aren’t meshing. The defense is atrocious.
The issue is that I still don’t think New York can acquire Giannis without a third team being involved, and that’s hard to do in the middle of the season.
Should the Bucks trade Giannis right now?
Nehm: Right now? Before this year’s trade deadline? Absolutely not.
From a purely strategic standpoint, trading Antetokounmpo in the middle of the season is full of roadblocks for potential trade partners that would limit the packages offered for the Bucks’ all-time leading scorer. During the regular season, whether it be roster size limits, the luxury tax, or one of the aprons, teams face tighter roster-building restrictions.
In the offseason, teams can carry up to 21 players. They can keep their rosters largely barren to load up the top portion of their roster before signing minimum free agents. Rosters are malleable and flexible, and, most importantly, they don’t have to play NBA games in the summer. No roster needs to be submitted every other night for a game that is going to count in the standings. Everything can change in the offseason right up until the moment they need to submit their opening night roster.
And all of that is not even touching on the fact that it isn’t even clear that the Bucks should ever trade Antetokounmpo. It seems as though that has become the accepted outcome with Antetokounmpo, and I don’t understand why.
This is the worst the Bucks have been as a team since Antetokounmpo blossomed into a perennial MVP candidate, but he is the best thing that has ever happened to the franchise. He led the Bucks to their first championship in 50 years, and his presence alone gives Milwaukee the best chance to win another one. The 10-time All-Star has signed an extension with the Bucks every time it has been placed in front of him, and the organization has a chance to place another extension in front of him on Oct. 1.
What would stop the Bucks from doing everything in their power to make the roster as strong as possible before putting that extension in front of him again?
Since taking over as general manager in 2017, Jon Horst has done everything in his power to assemble the strongest possible team around Antetokounmpo, regularly surrendering future draft picks to make the current roster as strong as possible. If the Bucks make it through this trade deadline without moving their lone tradeable future first-round pick, they would have three tradeable first-round picks on draft night and the future draft assets to take yet another home run swing to build a more balanced, talented and complete roster.
If you’re running the Knicks, what’s the best package you could put together for Giannis? If you’re running the Bucks, what is the package you’d entertain from the Knicks?
Edwards: If I were calling the shots and whatever I offered was gold, my ideal trade would be this: Karl-Anthony Towns, Pacome Dadiet and every pick that I have eligible to trade – none of which are good picks.
There’s no way Milwaukee would do this.
If I wanted to offer the Bucks a respectable deal — or at least the most respectable that I could offer — it would look like this: OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Miles McBride, the top-8 protected Wizards first-round pick, picks swaps in 2030, 2032 and multiple second-round picks for Giannis, Thanasis Antetokounmpo and Gary Harris.
There’s no way Milwaukee would do this right, Eric?
I find it very, very hard to believe Horst would trade Giannis for anything other than first-round picks and tantalizing young players. It doesn’t make sense for Milwaukee to try and just be an OK team if it were to part with its franchise cornerstone.
Nehm: If I was running the Bucks and willing to trade Antetokounmpo — which, to be clear, I would not be — I would start negotiations by letting the Knicks know that I don’t have any interest in a package headlined by Karl-Anthony Towns.
The roster I’ve been put in charge of in this hypothetical already has Myles Turner, a center who shoots 3s and protects the rim, so why would I have any interest in adding another center whose defining characteristic is elite 3-point shooting? Also, head coach Mike Brown has spent the last month publicly questioning Towns’ effort and ability. That is not the type of player I’m trying to build my entire franchise around.
Then, I’m telling the Knicks that they need to find some first-round picks because, as of now, the only picks they have to offer are second-rounders (because the Wizards’ 2026 pick is not going to convey) and first-round swaps in 2030 and 2032. That will not be enough to get a deal done for Antetokounmpo.
Once we get those basics out of the way, I think you’ve found what I would be targeting from a player perspective in your respectable deal, but I’d make one tweak. I’d throw in Kyle Kuzma on my side to get enough salary to make the total package: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, and Kyle Kuzma for OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart and Miles McBride.
Unfortunately, while all four of those players are elite in supporting roles, they have combined for zero All-Star appearances in their careers.
Trading for Antetokounmpo with me in charge would require star power, All-Star potential or a boatload of picks. The Knicks, as currently constructed, don’t have any of those things outside of Towns, who I don’t want, and Jalen Brunson, whom the Knicks won’t give up. So, ultimately, I don’t see any way that we would be able to find a deal.
And that’s fine because my hypothetical roster would still be headlined by one of the best players in the world.
Which team is more likely to make a big move before the deadline?
Edwards: I don’t think the Bucks trade Giannis, and anyone else they could move wouldn’t fall under the “big” category. However, I do think Milwaukee is more likely to make a move that could better position it to be competitive in the postseason.
As for the Knicks … listen. I know Dolan came out and publicly said that this is the roster and he doesn’t expect any big moves. But as New York continues to free-fall, and I keep talking to people around the league, it would not stun me if Karl-Anthony Towns got traded. I wouldn’t bet on it, but it’s something I’m monitoring.
The return wouldn’t be grand. But it would be considered a “big” move given all that has taken place in New York over the last 1.5 years.
Nehm: The players the Bucks would need to move — Kyle Kuzma and Bobby Portis — to get to the salary range of a star player are not bigger names than Towns, so that might mean the Knicks end up making a bigger move, but Horst will be aggressive this trade season, as he has been every trade season since becoming general manager.
For the Bucks though, finding the right trade will be difficult. Their biggest asset this trade season is arguably the salary cap space (roughly $12 million) they have below the luxury-tax line. That space means the Bucks can eat the unwanted salary other teams are trying to dump before the deadline, but Milwaukee doesn’t have much in the way of expiring contracts to send back to other teams to help teams truly clear their books. Instead, they can only offer teams with unwanted long-term contracts the opportunity to clear their books a year or two earlier.
Ultimately, though, Horst almost always finds a move at the deadline, so it seems fair to assume he will do it again, especially considering the struggles the Bucks have had thus far this season.
