Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo is still weighing his long-term future with the franchise. As the two-time MVP considers his future with the Bucks, he’s thinking that maybe a change of scenery is what’s best for his career. The team is now at a pivotal crossroads. They are doing it while taking on heavy lifting as they attempt to construct a championship-level roster around their best player.
The Bucks are on the clock with Giannis’s contract situation. In addition, looming free agency in 2027 hangs over their heads and forces their hand with their choice. Antetokounmpo’s contract includes the provision that he can extend it in the 2025-26 season. If signed now, this extension would tack an additional four years on to his existing contract. His future choices will go without saying affect which way the franchise will trend.
That pressure is only mounting on the Bucks to put a competitive roster around Giannis. All-Star weekend general manager Jon Horst has been active, completing 25 separate trades since his promotion in June of 2017. In these trades, the team forfeited seven first-round picks. They surrendered three future years of pick swaps, as well as 18 second-rounders, all of which helped distort the remaining roster.
A Championship Roster in Question
The Milwaukee Bucks have achieved considerable success, trailing only the Boston Celtics as the winningest regular-season team since 2016-17, largely due to Giannis Antetokounmpo’s contributions. Giannis and Brook Lopez are the only players remaining from their 2021 championship-winning roster. The urgency to build out that dream team has only grown clearer.
According to sources around Antetokounmpo, he is indeed looking for his best long term fit. This process might include evaluating the merits of possible trades. This new reality opens up some major questions over how the Bucks can improve their uneven roster this offseason. The franchise currently finds itself $19 million over the luxury tax and $11 million above the first apron, which complicates their financial maneuverability.
Bobby Portis, a teammate of Antetokounmpo, commented on the implications of any potential trade involving their star player:
“Just looking business-wise: You trade for him, obviously, he’s going to make, what, $58-$60 million.” – Bobby Portis
This statement underscores the financial pieces at play with Antetokounmpo’s hypothetical departure. It looks at what this shift may mean for both the Bucks and whatever franchises are pursuing him.
Challenges for Potential Trade Partners
Antetokounmpo’s four-year, $186 million extension kicks in next season, making him one of the most difficult players to match in a summer trade. Any franchise that doesn’t have enough salary cap space to accommodate it has to send Milwaukee at least $43.5 million in salaries. They have to not go over the first apron.
Included in the pack of teams expected to try for a Giannis trade are the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs. In many ways, both franchises are well equipped with the draft assets, young players and/or biggest contracts to make it work. Their win-now rosters at least keep up with Giannis’s fierce competitiveness. That’s what makes them formidable contenders if he does decide to look elsewhere than Milwaukee.
The Bucks’ unfolding financial crisis adds yet another layer of complexity to this already fraught scenario. With limited flexibility under their current cap constraints, it will be challenging for Milwaukee to make significant improvements without risking further financial repercussions.
Future Uncertainty for Milwaukee
As Giannis Antetokounmpo considers his options, the Milwaukee Bucks have some hard choices ahead that will determine how much longer they can contend. The team’s management must balance securing a competitive roster with respecting their star player’s ambitions and potential desire for change.
Retooling their existing roster will be challenging this summer, particularly in light of their lack of funds. The current wave of trade speculation is led by his situation. This fanfare underscores what’s at stake for the franchise as it attempts to survive and thrive amid a changing competitive landscape.
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