The Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes are well underway ahead of Thursday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline with teams lining up their draft assets and young talent. Multiple Celtics rivals are expected to be in the conversation if Antetokounmpo is moved from Milwaukee in the coming days.
According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, he doesn’t expect the Knicks to be a landing spot at the deadline. New York was rumored to be a preferred destination for Antetokounmpo, but Windhorst threw cold water on the idea of an in-season trade.
“They are not showing that aggression to get Giannis right now,” Windhorst said. “I think that’s because they like this team. They don’t think the Eastern Conference is a giant mountain to climb. While this team has flaws, the entire East is limited in some capacity. So, look, if Giannis doesn’t get traded and the Knicks don’t win the East this year, this could be revisited.”
The Knicks endured a midseason lull a few weeks ago, but they’ve won six straight games. They’re 31-18, currently tied with the Celtics for second in the East. The Knicks are also coming off an East Finals berth with contender expectations coming into the year.
Windhorst mentioned it would take multiple other teams to join the conversation if the Knicks wanted to pursue Antetokounmpo. New York moved future first-round picks in order to land Mikal Bridges. The Knicks could offer Karl-Anthony Towns and other pieces, but the Bucks are going to want draft assets in a post-Antetokounmpo rebuild.
So it doesn’t sound like the Knicks will be players for Antetokounmpo at least during the season. While the Bucks field calls for the two-time MVP ahead of the deadline, they could also wait until the summer to make the big swing. The Knicks could re-enter the conversation at that time, but there are a lot of ifs until then.