Giannis trade, Giannis to Knicks, Mikal Bridges, Giannis Antetokounmpo
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Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks dribbles the ball against Mikal Bridges #25 of the New York Knicks during the first quarter at Fiserv Forum on October 28, 2025 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The New York Knicks never made a serious push for Giannis Antetokounmpo at the trade deadline. That restraint may ultimately work in their favor.
NBA insider Chris Haynes reported that the Milwaukee Bucks approached the deadline not as a moment to execute a franchise-altering trade, but as a league-wide intelligence-gathering exercise, opting to delay any decision on Antetokounmpo until the offseason, when the market could expand significantly.
“Sources close to me told me that he never requested a trade,” Haynes said on NBA on Prime. “Obviously, he’s been applying pressure over the last couple of years in hopes that the Bucks would turn this roster into a championship-contending roster. He wants to contend for a title during his prime. But right now, he’s happy. He’s focused on getting healthy.”
That framing — timing over urgency — helps explain why several teams, including New York, avoided all-in bids in February and instead positioned themselves for a summer decision point.
Bucks Used Deadline to Set the Board, Not Clear It
According to Haynes, what ultimately prevented a Giannis deal was not a lack of interest, but Milwaukee’s belief that patience would yield stronger leverage.
“What stopped a move from happening right now was that the Bucks were essentially in an intel-gathering phase,” Haynes said. “They wanted to see what deals were out there, and they decided the offseason would be better suited to make a real play.”
That approach keeps Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee for now, but also resets the league’s expectations: any real movement would come once teams regain draft flexibility, cap clarity, and playoff outcomes reshape front-office calculations.
For the Knicks, that matters.
Knicks Have Been Here Before — With Giannis’ Blessing
New York’s name in Giannis conversations is not speculative. ESPN’s Shams Charaniareported in October that the Knicks were Antetokounmpo’s preferred landing spot during last summer’s exploratory talks, a stance that led to an exclusive negotiation window between Milwaukee and New York.
At the time, the Bucks and Knicks engaged in direct discussions without opening the process to the rest of the league — a rare concession that underscored Giannis’ interest in New York and the Knicks’ credibility as a long-term destination, according to Charania.
While no deal materialized, that history looms large now that Haynes has confirmed Milwaukee’s preference to revisit the market in the offseason rather than force a deadline decision.
New York’s Giannis Posture Remains Deliberate
Despite that prior access, league insiders have consistently portrayed New York’s stance as measured rather than aggressive.
ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported earlier this week that the Knicks drew a firm internal line on how far they were willing to go.
“The Knicks believe in this team, and that could end up being an excellent assessment or that could end up being a mistake,” Windhorst said. “But they believed in this team last summer when Giannis was sort of loosely available. They didn’t make an aggressive offer at that time to move those talks forward.”
According to Windhorst, little has changed since then. New York did not signal a willingness to assemble the type of sprawling, multi-team package typically required to pry a two-time MVP from a franchise determined to exhaust every alternative first.
On-Court Results Will Shape Knicks’ Summer Choices
That restraint has been reinforced by results — and recently, by reminders of the Knicks’ ceiling.
New York entered the trade deadline riding an eight-game winning streak, only to see that momentum halted immediately afterward in a 38-point loss to the East’s No. 1 seed Detroit Pistons. While the Knicks were without Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby, Detroit also played without All-Star center Jalen Duren.
The result underscored the uncertainty that still surrounds New York’s championship ceiling — particularly after last season’s breakthrough run to the Eastern Conference finals, their first in 25 years.
Knicks Could Be Better Equipped When Market Reopens
If the Knicks decide a swing is necessary, the offseason offers tools that simply weren’t available in February.
By summer, New York is projected to control two first-round picks (2026 and 2033), along with multiple high-salaried starters not named Jalen Brunson, giving them both financial ballast and optionality in trade construction.
More importantly, Haynes’ intel reframes the Giannis sweepstakes as a patience game — one that rewards teams willing to wait for the board to reset rather than overextend prematurely.
For the Knicks, that restraint may no longer be a liability, but an advantage.
As the league shifts from deadline noise to offseason reality, New York’s calculated posture — paired with Antetokounmpo’s prior interest — could once again place the Knicks at the center of the conversation when it truly matters.