NBA Trade Idea Sends Giannis Antetokounmpo To Warriors

If Giannis Antetokounmpo requests a trade from the Milwaukee Bucks this summer, Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report proposed that the Golden State Warriors trade Jimmy Butler and two first-round picks to the Bucks for the two-time MVP. 

“Golden State, to be clear, would not have the best trade package to offer. But it could piece together a compelling offer nonetheless,” Buckley wrote. “Basically, anyone and anything not named Stephen Curry—who, notably, is repped by the same agency (Octagon) as Antetokounmpo—could be up for grabs. Picks and prospects would be out the door, but a primary building block like Draymond Green or even Jimmy Butler could be involved too—either getting sent back to the Bucks, who lack the draft pick control needed to reap the full rewards of a rebuild, or being sent to a third team who reroutes additional assets to Milwaukee.

“It still might need Antetokounmpo’s assistance to get a deal across the goal line. And it isn’t impossible to imagine him deciding—and vocalizing—that Golden State is his best fit. He and Curry share an obvious admiration for one another, and their games would be effortlessly intertwined. Beyond the devastation they’d bring in a pick-and-roll partnership, each would feast with the spacing created by the other’s gravitational pull on defenders.”

The Bucks lost to the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the 2025 playoffs in five games. They have won just one postseason series since winning the championship in 2021 against the Phoenix Suns. 

The Bucks signed Antetokounmpo to a three-year, $175 million extension in October 2023.

Antetokounmpo has spent his entire career with the Bucks. He’s a two-time MVP, a one-time Finals MVP, a one-time Defensive Player of the Year and a nine-time All-Star. The superstar forward has career averages of 23.9 points, 9.9 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.2 blocks. 

“Even after a megadeal for Antetokounmpo, the Warriors should have a decent collection of role players, plus one of basketball’s top coaches in Steve Kerr and an ownership group willing to spend big on a winner,” Buckley wrote. “Health-permitting, that’s all a contending-level combo for whatever remains of Curry’s prime.”