NBA teams that are very much interested in bringing Giannis Antetokounmpo in via trade may have to act now, lest they run the risk of the empire that is the Los Angeles Lakers joining the sweepstakes for the Milwaukee Bucks star. While there have been previous reports indicating that the Bucks would prefer to trade Antetokounmpo before the deadline, there is always a chance that he sticks around until at least this offseason.
If that happens, the Lakers, according to NBA insider Marc Stein, have to be considered a realistic destination for Antetokounmpo. After all, they will have a ton of cap space in the offseason, as around $95 million will be coming off their books.
“If the Bucks do ultimately decide to take this saga into that spring, the Lakers, league sources say, would then indeed become a very viable threat to land No. 34,” Stein wrote. “The hope for the purple-and-gold would then be to use their considerable projected salary cap space to be able to take in a contract like Antetokounmpo's via trade — or another expensive star if one shakes loose post-playoffs — to pair with backcourt cornerstones Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves.”
“Dealing with the Lakers in such a scenario would almost certainly spare the Bucks from getting saddled with unwanted contracts.”
Article Continues Below
The Lakers have a different knock
Lakers forward LeBron James (23) and head coach JJ Redick against the Phoenix Suns at Mortgage Matchup Center
Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Will Lakers exceptionalism come to play once more when it comes to the pursuit of Antetokounmpo? There is a chance that it does. After all, not much comes close to the glitz and glamour that comes with playing for one of the league's most storied franchises in the biggest market in the NBA.
Nonetheless, even if the Lakers fail to trade for Antetokounmpo come offseason (which they most likely will considering that they lack the draft assets and young players to entice the Bucks), they can still pursue him in 2027, the offseason they're keeping their books clean for.