Giannis Antetokounmpo is officially open to exploring options beyond the Milwaukee Bucks for the first time in his career. This feels like the soft launch of an inevitable trade request. The future is interminably bleak in Milwaukee. The Bucks are out of assets, buried in cap hell, and without Damian Lillard for next season. Why on earth would Giannis choose to stay?
There's an outside chance that loyalty wins out, but we've heard now that Giannis likes the idea of playing in a big market and with another star — two things Milwaukee does not give him right now.
The 2025 NBA Draft Lottery was always bound to have significant implications on the Giannis sweepstakes. Little did we know just how crazy the results would be. The Dallas Mavericks leapt up 10 spots to claim the No. 1 overall pick and the rights to Cooper Flagg. Meanwhile, the San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers — two potential contenders — round out the top three.
Milwaukee is in a tricky spot without control of its next five drafts, but we can assume the Bucks want cornerstone young talent to build their future around. There's a good chance one of these high lottery picks ends up en route to Cream City before all is said and done.
Here are five realistic landing spots for Giannis now that the draft order is finalized.
Subscribe to The Whiteboard, FanSided's daily email newsletter on everything basketball. If you like The Whiteboard, share it with a friend. If you hate it, share it with an enemy!
5. New Orleans Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans are a major sleeper here. Falling all the way to No. 7 was not ideal, but new team president Joe Dumars is equipped with one of the deepest reservoirs of draft capital in the NBA. Moreover, he brings a somewhat classic, old-school mindset to the front office. Giannis is a very classic, old-school superstar.
New Orleans has been in need of more stability than what Zion Williamson can provide. The Pelicans also happen to own Milwaukee's next two draft picks. So, New Orleans can provide the Bucks with a couple avenues to a franchise centerpiece — whether it's Zion or the No. 7 pick — as well as Milwaukee's own future picks, which would allow the Bucks to flirt with a tank.
Giannis probably wants a sexier market than New Orleans, but the Pelicans are built to contend in short order. Trey Murphy is an ideal rising star to pair with Giannis on the wing. Dejounte Murray and CJ McCollum, if not long-term building blocks, are good players with trade value. Herb Jones is an otherworldly defender. Yves Missi feels like a potential starter at center. There's some stuff there to satisfy both parties in this trade.
4. Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets are locked and loaded in the Giannis pursuit, per Brian Lewis of the New York Post. Sean Marks has 31 future picks (and 15 future first-round picks) at his disposal. Brooklyn's roster ain't much right now, but equipped with $50 million in cap space and infinite draft assets, the Nets could build out the roster around Antetokounmpo on short notice.
We have heard reports of Giannis' interest in playing in New York. While the Knicks probably aren't in a position to trade for the two-time MVP, Brooklyn gives him big-market scale with slightly less pressure and a bit more flexibility in shaping the roster. There's something almost appealing about the blank-slate nature of the Nets. Giannis can recruit his next star teammate; he can age alongside a young, durable supporting cast.
It doesn't take much aside from Giannis to build a contender. Sean Marks' track record over the years is somewhat complicated, but it's hard to imagine him fumbling the Giannis experiment worse than Milwaukee has in recent years. As such, the Nets are a real team to watch — even after falling to No. 8 on lottery night.
3. Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets won the 10th overall pick courtesy of the Phoenix Suns. With several juicy draft assets, an array of quality young players, and serious competitive aspirations, few teams make more season for Giannis on paper. The Rockets happen to occupy one of the biggest media markets in the United States, to boot.
Houston can build its trade package around one of Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson, with a top-10 pick, a future Phoenix pick, and several lesser-value draft assets or prospects to sprinkle in. The Rockets are deep enough to trade multiple high-level contributors without completely tanking the supporting cast.
Giannis fits the ethos of Ime Udoka, who prioritizes defensive intensity and execution above all else. Also, after all those years of feuding with James Harden, it would be mildly ironic and very funny if Giannis is the next superstar tasked with guiding the Rockets into the future. What if he wins a championship in Houston, unlike Harden? So many fun narrative twists.
2. San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs were once again blessed by the lottery gods, jumping up six spots to No. 2. The obvious pick is Dylan Harper, but San Antonio has two cornerstone guards in De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle. Moreover, the Fox trade was proof that the Spurs want to win now and view Victor Wembanyama as a top-10 player. Why not attempt to parlay that pick into Giannis, a top-2 player?
It shouldn't be hard for the Spurs to formulate a compelling package centered on the No. 2 pick, Castle, and some future draft capital. San Antonio isn't as pick-loaded as NOLA or Houston, but the Spurs are still well and truly stuffed with positive assets. Harper is also a genuinely special talent. He would be the runaway No. 1 pick in a lot of other years.
If the Bucks can swing a few assets to New Orleans to get their own picks back, even better. The Spurs have the motivation and the talent to justify such a swing. It is not a very Spursian move to sell the farm for an older star, but have we ever seen a frontcourt as intimidating and dynamic as Wemby and Giannis? Probably not.
1. Dallas Mavericks
ESPN's Brian Windhorst left Dallas Mavericks fans with this little nugget at the end of the lottery broadcast.
I caught that @WindhorstESPN!!!!
— Shan Shariff (@1053SS) May 12, 2025
“They’ve wanted Giannis in Dallas for years. They signed his brother, just thought I’d point that out.” pic.twitter.com/sC2bbeLy7f
Is Dallas actually going to trade out of the No. 1 overall pick and a generational talent in Cooper Flagg? Well, everything is on the table with Nico Harrison, and Giannis is himself a generational talent — a surefire MVP candidate with championship pedigree and an insatiable competitive appetite, something Harrison clearly cares about.
There is not a single better asset potentially available to Milwaukee than Flagg. He's so good that it's fair to wonder if the Mavs should actually trade an unproven 18-year-old for one of the 15 or so greatest players to ever live. Giannis has plenty left in the tank at 30 years old, however. Pair him with Anthony Davis and (eventually) a healthy Kyrie Irving, and Dallas has a real chance to win the West. That frontcourt is going to stifle opposing offenses and obliterate opposing defenses by sheer force of will.
Dallas is limited in what it can offer outside of Flagg, but the Duke phenom alone is enough to pique Milwaukee's interest. He is arguably the best prospect of the last 20 years not named Victor Wembanyama. If the Bucks are looking for a new foundation upon which to build their next decade, Flagg is the dream. We ought to keep this possibility in the back of our minds.