For the last several months, NBA fans have been tormented with Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors and reports.
At long last, we’ve been freed of those shackles.
In an overnight blockbuster, the Milwaukee Bucks sent Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to the Miami Heat in exchange for three unprotected first-round picks, Tyler Herro, Jamie Jaquez Jr., Kel’el Ware, Kasparas Jakucionis and a second-round pick.
The Bucks chose the right package.
Leading up to the trade, we heard reports that the Boston Celtics and Heat were the finalists in the Giannis sweepstakes.
The Celtics reportedly offered two first-round picks and superstar forward Jaylen Brown.
Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam was the driving force behind Milwaukee accepting Miami’s trade package. According to reports, Haslam didn’t want to deal with the potential fallout of Brown’s free agency. Instead of adding a 29-year-old superstar in Brown, the Bucks chose to gut Miami’s young core and bench with three unprotected picks.
That’s a great decision.
Brown is a superstar. This season, he proved that he could carry a contender in the Eastern Conference, when he had the Celtics as a top-ranked team without Jayson Tatum.
But for Milwaukee, what’s the point?
Their roster is so bad, that Brown alone would have the Bucks as an NBA Play-In team – not a serious contender to win the NBA title. Then, they’d be at risk of losing him in free agency.
Instead, race to the bottom. Embrace young talent. Lose some games. Draft good players. That’s the only way forward in the NBA, unless you’re the team landing the superstars. And for Milwaukee, that’s probably not in the cards. So, it’s time to draft and develop well.
Herro isn’t as good as Brown, but he’s a great consolation prize, especially when he comes with a few extra draft picks and good role players in Jaquez and Ware.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are living proof at how dangerous an organization can become with premium draft capital. GM Sam Presti embraced the down years, stockpiling young talent while trading superstars like Paul George for even more draft picks. This helped Oklahoma City win a championship in 2025 and will help them maintain a consistent contender status for years into the future.
Trading a superstar is never fun. The Bucks aren’t a better basketball team after losing Giannis. But in sports, you’re oftentimes faced with very tough decisions. And even though it might hurt right now, and the Bucks will face pressure to make the correct decisions with these picks and young assets going into the future, it certainly feels like they made the right decision.
