If the Toronto Raptors decide to get involved in the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes, the rest of the NBA will instantly have to improve their offers. It's a simple result of how much more the Raptors have to offer than a vast majority of the teams that are likely to express interest in acquiring the two-time MVP.
With a unique combination of proven talent, promising up-and-comers on rookie-scale contracts, and first-round draft picks to improve their respective offers, Toronto is quite a dark horse.
The Raptors have charted a course for a postseason appearance that few believed possible in 2025-26. They've overcome the widespread concerns over how a cast of underwhelming shooters with similar skill sets can coexist by emphasizing defense and ball movement en route to a 15-8 record.
In the event that Toronto opts to get in on the Antetokounmpo sweepstakes, their hot start and quiet progress in 2024-25 could prove immensely beneficial.
It's fair to assume the Raptors would make Scottie Barnes untouchable and that they'd prefer to hold on to All-Star wing Brandon Ingram. That could ultimately make Milwaukee reluctant to pursue a trade, but Toronto has an endless list of intriguing assets to offer a potentially rebuilding team.
If the Bucks are preparing to prioritize the future over the present, then the Raptors have a chance to make a landscape-altering offer for Antetokounmpo.
Raptors can offer Bucks an instantly brighter future via Giannis trade
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In terms of proven and productive veterans, the Raptors have three players [who could potentially appeal](https://raptorsrapture.com/the-many-layers-to-rj-barrett-impact-on-off-the-court-canada-basketball-raptors) to the Bucks: RJ Barrett, Jakob Poeltl, and Immanuel Quickley. All three would offer immediate value to a rotation that already has a pair of high-level players in Ryan Rollins and Myles Turner.
A combination of two of those players could help the Bucks improve the depth of their roster and prevent a long-term rebuild from becoming necessary as they at least remain fairly competitive.
The true appeal of a Raptors offer, however, can be found among the players on rookie-scale contracts. Toronto not only has a surplus of promising talent, but has positioned its players to produce and reveal how realistic their potential is over the past two seasons.
The list of players Milwaukee could prove interested in includes Ochai Agbaji, Gradey Dick, Jonathan Mogbo, Collin Murray-Boyles, Jamal Shead, and Ja'Kobe Walter—all of whom are 25 or younger.
Agbaji, Dick, and Walter represent an opportunity for Milwaukee to add productive young perimeter players to their rotation. Agbaji has already looked the part of a 3-and-D wing after averaging 10.4 points per game on .498/.399/.708 shooting in 2024-25, while Dick averaged 14.4 points on .410/.350/.858 shooting last season and is still just 22 years of age.
Shead, meanwhile, is a [proven playmaker and defender](https://raptorsrapture.com/offensive-setbacks-cant-diminish-jamal-shead-vital-role-for-the-raptors-darko-rajakovic), and while Mogbo and Walter could be classified as players with less proven abilities, they've shown flashes of brilliance in their own right.
Raptors can offer productive talent, untapped potential, and picks
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Murray-Boyles would be the true prize in potential negotiations as a versatile forward who has drawn comparisons to Draymond Green. His ability to defend multiple positions, create for his teammates, and space the floor could make him a cornerstone in Milwaukee from his first moment on the court.
If the Raptors are willing to package Murray-Boyles with at least one other promising young piece, as well as some combination of Barrett, Poeltl, and Quickley, they could at least get the Bucks on the phone.
Toronto can then raise the bar with the ability to offer as many as four future first-round draft picks. The financial logistics even allow a hypothetical deal that includes Agbaji, Barrett, Dick, Murray-Boyles, and Poeltl plus four first-round selections for Antetokounmpo and Kyla Kuzma.
That isn't to say the Raptors should go in willing to trade the aforementioned assets to acquire Antetokounmpo and take on Kuzma's contract, of course, but is instead an extreme example of how much they can offer.
Even if that hypothetical trade were completed, Toronto would be able to move forward with Antetokounmpo, Barnes, Ingram, and Quickley in the starting lineup. They'd also still have a quality depth chart with Jamison Battle, A.J. Lawson, Sandro Mamukelashvili, Mogbo, Shead, and Walter on the roster.
It's unclear what an actual trade for Antetokounmpo would look like, nor is it known if he'd want to play in Toronto, but the Raptors have the assets to raise the bar for other interested parties.