Giannis Antetokounmpo has reportedly not made up his mind about whether he wants to remain with the Milwaukee Bucks, and the New York Knicks are one team that is expected to be at the forefront of the discussions should the two-time MVP want to relocate.
ESPN’s Shams Charania said on Monday that Antetokounmpo is continuing to evaluate his future and assessing whether he believes the Bucks are a legitimate contender. Some have wondered if the Knicks would still pursue Giannis after they signed Mikal Bridges to a 4-year, $150 million extension last week.
In his mailbag that was published on Tuesday, James L. Edwards III of The Athletic was asked if he believes the Bridges extension will have any impact on New York’s interest in Antetokounmpo. He said the Knicks were monitoring the situation with Giannis “very closely” even before the offseason. Edwards also noted the timing of the Bridges extension.
Players cannot be traded for six months after they sign an extension. Had Bridges not signed a new deal until Aug. 6 or later, he would not be eligible to be traded ahead of the February deadline during the 2025-26 season.
While Edwards does not believe the Knicks are set on trading Bridges, he believes it was deliberate that they extended the star forward when they did. Now, they will have the flexibility to include Bridges in a potential trade for Antetokounmpo or another star player prior to next season’s deadline.
There are very few people who believe the Bucks will trade Giannis ahead of next season, and they may not move him at all. But if the nine-time All-Star asks to be dealt, there have already been signs that he might want to play in The Big Apple.
Antetokounmpo signed a supermax extension with the Bucks in 2023. He is under contract through the 2026-27 season and has a $62.8 million player option for 2027-28.
Giannis is coming off another outstanding regular season 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game. He was even better in the playoffs with 33.0 points, 15.4 rebounds and 6.6 assists per game, but it was not enough for Milwaukee to win a series. The Bucks lost to the Indiana Pacers in five games in the opening round.