By most reputable accounts, and as best as I can uncover, the sweepstakes for Giannis Antetokounmpo are boiling down to two teams, barring a dark-horse candidate entering the fray, and it’s maybe not a coincidence they’re both chief rivals of the champion New York Knicks.
“Miami is in the lead,” one league source said of the Heat, who, according to multiple reports, are dangling a package that includes Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., the No. 13 overall pick in this year’s draft and future draft capital for the two-time MVP.
And if that is what the Heat are offering, without a blue-chip talent in the deal, why wouldn’t the Boston Celtics join the conversation? They could offer as the centerpiece of a trade Jaylen Brown, who is the best player the Milwaukee Bucks could possibly land in return for Giannis, and who might be able to fetch an even heftier haul from a third team.
“Boston is trying to make trades,” a league source said.
What exactly the Celtics are offering is difficult to determine. According to The Ringer’s Bill Simmons, Boston has indeed made an offer for Antetokounmpo. According to insider Jake Fischer, “Boston had not yet seriously engaged Milwaukee.” And according to The Athletic’s Sam Amick, Milwaukee was “seeking clarity” from Boston, among other teams.
If the Bucks don’t know exactly what the Celtics are offering, what hope does anyone else have of knowing? A package would almost certainly have to include either Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, and let’s be honest, even after his Achilles injury, the Celtics aren’t trading Jayson Tatum.
There’s the rub. In order to acquire Antetokounmpo, Boston would have to include Brown, and there is no indication that the Celtics have offered the Second Team All-NBA wing. And for good reason. If they offer him and fail to get Antetokounmpo, they risk alienating Brown, whose partnership with Tatum is under constant public scrutiny, especially since the 29-year-old called this season — one largely without his co-star — his career highlight.
More likely, the Celtics are seeking clarity from the Bucks about whether a deal could be completed if they include Brown, before they actually put him on the table, and that may require a third team. For example, the Portland Trail Blazers, who hold the rights to Milwaukee’s first-round picks from 2027-30, have been floated as a potential facilitator.
Of course, Portland is also considered a suitor for Antetokounmpo, along with the Orlando Magic and Minnesota Timberwolves, according to Amick. Yet, Boston and Miami are leading this arms race against the Knicks in the Eastern Conference, where Giannis would reportedly prefer to remain, avoiding the more difficult title path in the West.
There is some surprise that a deal has not come to fruition yet, since many around the league expected a trade to piece together quickly in the aftermath of the NBA Finals. If the Bucks were satisfied with the Heat’s offer, a trade would almost surely be finalized by now, since Miami is reportedly among Antetokounmpo’s list of preferred destinations.
But both the Bucks and Antetokounmpo may be experiencing a bit of seller’s remorse. In Milwaukee’s case, it is hard to pinpoint one asset Miami is offering — including Herro, a 26-year-old one-time All-Star and Wisconsin native — that can meaningfully alter its fortunes. For Antetokounmpo, it is difficult to identify what talent he would play with on the Heat beyond Bam Adebayo, and that is an impediment toward his stated goal of another championship, even if Miami becomes a destination for title-chasing free agents.
Of course, Boston is also on Antetokounmpo’s list, according to multiple reports. It makes sense. If all the Celtics were really going to give up was Brown, they could still field Tatum, Derrick White and a rotation that won 56 games this past season with Brown, sans Tatum, as the centerpiece on both sides of the ball. Upgrade from Brown to Antetokounmpo, and Boston should increase its odds of winning the championship, or so the theory goes.
As Celtics executive Brad Stevens said following his team’s tough first-round playoff loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, “One of the things that we’ve got to figure out is how to have more of an impact at the rim, and I think we do need to add to our team to do that.” And who better than Antetokounmpo — the league’s most fearsome rim attacker — for the job.
Still, while the decision to offer Herro is not difficult for the Heat, who have dangled the former Sixth Man of the Year for more established stars before, it is harder for the Celtics to part with Brown. He won Finals MVP on Boston’s 2024 NBA championship run, when his tandem with Tatum, with the right pieces around them, became a proven commodity.
Surely, the Celtics believe they can win again with Tatum and Brown, so long as they surround them with superior talent, and sentimentally that is the better story — climbing the mountaintop once again with a pair of homegrown stars, rather than a hired hand.
But it is not Stevens’ job to get sentimental. He is looking at this through the lens of whether or not Giannis gives the Celtics a better chance to win the championship, and there is some question about that, too. He is two years older than Brown, carrying a more robust injury history. Antetokounmpo, 31, has missed 25% of the Bucks’ regular-season games and 29% of their playoff games since leading them to the championship in 2021.
Then, there is the matter of fit between Tatum and Antetokounmpo. Though they share a skills coach, Drew Hanlen, and their abilities should complement each other well, Tatum has never played with a talent quite like Giannis, and vice versa. And that will take some time to figure out, time the Celtics may have if they convince Giannis to sign an extension.
There you have it, then. The Bucks have a standing offer from Miami and are reluctant to accept it, believing better offers, including one from Boston, should become available. Only we’re not sure the Celtics’ best offer is on the table, and they may be unsure about it, too, considering how it could impact Brown’s psyche if the trade fails to materialize.
So, the sweepstakes persist, as the rumor mill continues to churn.
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