By all appearances, the Milwaukee Bucks have opened the Giannis Antetokounmp sweepstakes.
Shams Charania of ESPN reported Monday that the Bucks are accepting calls and offers on their superstar. Furthermore, Charania reported that Boston’s front office was one of at least five teams who “pursued Antetokounmpo at the February deadline, and their finishes to the campaign will play a major factor in their aggressiveness to trade for him.”
Given the Celtics’ early exit from the playoffs, the question now is simple: should Boston be in the Greek Freak business, and if so, what would it take to make a deal?
Here’s a breakdown of possible pros and cons to consider in a Giannis to Boston trade:
PRO: Celtics need a big man
Neemias Queta made massive strides as the Celtics’ starting center during the regular season. He averaged 10 points, 1.3 blocks, and 5.6 rebounds. In the payoffs, however, he got in foul trouble early and often. The Celtics didn’t have the depth at the big man position to weather this point of his learning curve. The Nikola Vucevic experiment failed, and he’s unlikely to return next season.
Antetokounmpo is technically more of a power forward than a classic center, but he offers a nearly-positionless game with a lot of rim protection and power in the paint. He’s played three seasons in which he averaged more than 30 points and 11.5 rebounds per game. Just having him on the floor changes the entire lineup calculation from another team, and offers a complementary piece to Boston’s dynamic wings.
CON: Will the Bucks demand a Jay?
If Milwaukee wants something close to a 1-for-1 trade that would swap Antetokounmpo and Jaylen Brown, Boston’s front office has to seriously consider whether that’s a trade they’re winning. Brown is two years younger than Antetokounmpo and coming off his best individual season. Giannis played just 36 games in a very dysfunctional 2025-26 season and in the games in which he did play, he lacked the output he’s shown over the previous three years.
Most importantly, Brown and Jayson Tatum have proven their ability to win together at a high level, including six Eastern Conference Finals trips their recent 2024 championship. The Giannis-led Bucks haven’t won a playoff series since 2022.
PRO: Boston’s offensive style could get a shakeup with Giannis
Categorizing the Celtics’ offensive system as “live-or-die by the three-pointer” is an oversimplification of what they’ve done, but their lousy long-distance shooting doomed them in the second half of their series against the Philadelphia 76ers.
President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens had an interesting answer about play style in his end-of-the-season press conference:
“I don’t think play style comes before roster. You got to figure out who you have and then play to the strengths of your team. But that's on both ends of the court.”
Antetokounmpo barely shoots 3’s. He averages about 14 2-point shot attempts a game, and just 2.2 3-pointer attempts. That ratio could really alter the Celtics’ dynamic on offense and give them a different point of attack when their shooting goes cold.
CON: Expensive extension
Relatively speaking, Jaylen Brown, the player who was just recently award the biggest contract in the NBA at the time, could be a less expensive option than Antetokounmpo during Jayson Tatum’s NBA prime, given the contract extension Giannis is sure to expect when six months after he signs with a new team, (if he does).
Antetokounmpo is slated to make $58.46 million next season, just a million more than Jaylen’s $57 million.
From there, Brown has $61 million lined up for 2027-28, and $64.95 million the last year – the final year of his contract. Antetokounmpo is eligible for four years at $275, or an average annual value of $68.75.
Either one of these players represent massive cap hits for their respective teams, and it comes down to which player provides bang for buck. In this case, it may not be the actual Buck.
