Incredibly, improbably, Giannis Antetokounmpo is still a member of the Milwaukee Bucks. It was hard to parse through all the vague and delicate reporting behind the rumors, but it really seemed like he wanted to leave without actually demanding a trade and that the Bucks were willing to accommodate his passive trade request.
Then the Warriors traded for Kristaps Porziņġis Wednesday night and leaked that they were bowing out of the race. Thursday morning, the Timberwolves made a trade with the Bulls, implying they were out as well. Around noon it leaked that the Bucks had told teams they were keeping Giannis. Later reports said that teams didn't think Milwaukee was ever serious about trading — but that might have just been saving face by GMs who couldn't get it done.
I'm honestly not sure whether to call Giannis, the Bucks and their fans winners or losers. It really seemed like he wanted to leave, but countless stars over the years have forced trades and discovered that the grass is definitely not greener. His social media reaction certainly implied he was happy to stay, but ... again ... saving face?
The Bucks held on to the greatest player in franchise history. But they haven't meaningfully changed the circumstances, just kicked the can down the road with no obvious way to get into a better position before summer hits. Maybe they win the draft lottery, and all is forgiven? But is Giannis really going to be excited about trying to win another ring with a rookie as his best teammate, even a potentially elite one like Cam Boozer, Darryn Peterson or AJ Dybantsa?
Bucks fans don't have to go through the emotional turmoil of saying goodbye to Giannis ... for now. But they also get to listen to trade scenarios for another five months while watching their team try to balance the desire to tank with the need to convince Giannis that the foundation of a contender is hidden somewhere on this roster. Pain deferred is still pain.
The biggest, clearest losers in the Giannis fallout are all the teams who had pinned their hopes on acquiring him, especially teams teetering on the end of the Play-In like the Miami Heat and the Golden State Warriors (more on that later). Those teams may get another shot at him this summer, but they will have missed an opportunity to catch lightning in a bottle this year and may have to outbid more teams in the offseason than they would have at the deadline.
Giannis not getting traded was the biggest story, but there were plenty of other massive deals this week, and we're sorting through the chaos looking for winners and losers.
Loser: Golden State Warriors
Not only did the Warriors not land Giannis Antetokounmpo, they also sold Jonathan Kuminga for about the lowest price imaginable. After nearly 12 months of rumors and trade scenarios, all they managed was the expiring contract of Kristaps Porziņġis, and they had to include Buddy Hield to get it done.
In theory, Porziņġis provides the Warriors with the interior defender they desperately needed, along with the floor-spacing to keep their offense healthy. In practice, he hasn't played in nearly a month; his availability for the rest of the season is very much in doubt, and it doesn't really matter since they don't have Jimmy Butler or the depth to really make a deep playoff run.
They'll have the cap space to reset this summer, with Butler hopefully returning healthy next year. But they let perfect be the enemy of good with Kuminga, waited way too long, and probably would have been much better off with a half-dozen other deals that were reportedly on the table over the last year.
Winner: Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers completely tanked their chances of a deep playoff run this year, but those chances were pretty slim to begin with. Instead, they've clearly started planning for a reset and will presumably try to move on from Kawhi Leonard as soon as they can.
They turned James Harden and Ivica Zubac into Darius Garland, Bennedict Mathurin, Isaiah Jackson and potentially two first-round picks. That's a pretty great haul, both in terms of draft assets and young talent. Mathurin and Garland could be a phenomenal offensive combination (just don't ask about their defense). They'll have to pay for Mathurin's next deal which should be less than max, and with free agents, team-options and non-guaranteed contracts they could have more than $60 million coming off their books.
They still have one more year of Kawhi Leonard at a cost of more than $50 million, but they did a lot of work turning the ship around in the past few days.
Loser: Washington Wizards
Call me a hater — but I hate what the Wizards have done. Trading for Trae Young earlier this season was terrible, doubling-down with Davis is even worse. They were already one of the worst teams in the league, and so I don't think their record can really get any worse over the next few years. But they've locked themselves into the world's most expensive torture chamber. A year from now, they're going to be looking for a way out of this mess they've themselves.
There's a reason I'm not an NBA GM, but I'd choose bad, cheap and fun, with guys you want to root for; over bad, expensive and miserable to watch with guys who drive you crazy. They may not know it yet, but the Wizards fans in your lives are in for a rocky ride.
Winner: Chicago Bulls
I'm not sure what the plan is in Chicago — and to be honest I'm not sure they do either. But for a team that has, historically, played things extremely conservatively at the deadline, I liked how many swings they took.
When the dust had settled, they sent out:
- Nikola Vucevic
- Coby White
- Kevin Huerter
- Dalen Terry
- Ayo Dosunmu
- Julian Phillips
And brought back:
- Jaden Ivey
- Anfernee Simons
- Collin Sexton
- Ousmane Dieng
- Guerschon Yabusele
- Rob Dillingham
- Leonard Miller
- Like a half-dozen second-round picks
I'm not sure they're actually better or any more likely to battle their way through the Play-In and into the playoffs proper. But everyone they sent out was playing at or near their ceiling, and everyone they brought in is something of a wild-card with potential upside. Ivey could be an All-Star. Simons could be a solid starter, or he could be cap space if they don't want to re-sign him this summer. Sexton and Yabusele could be solid depth pieces, or moved along to another contender.
I especially like rolling the dice on Dieng, Dillingham and Miller. Dieng feels like he's been around forever because he entered the draft at 19. He wasn't able to find a consistent role in OKC but he has the experience of playing in that environment, and he's a 6-foot-9 forward who can handle the ball and is shooting 37 percent from beyond the arc. Dillingham underwhelmed in Minnesota but was an incredible shotmaker in his one season at Kentucky and has shown flashes when given the chance. Miller is incredibly raw and has only played 179 NBA minutes across three seasons. But he's also 6-foot-10 and has been extremely impressive in the G League, averaging 20.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.8 blocks in 54 games, while shooting 34.9 percent from beyond the arc.
These kinds of low risk gambles are perfect for the Bulls and if even one or two of the players they acquired really pop, this could turn out to be a franchise turning point.
Loser: Philadelphia 76ers
The 76ers sent Jared McCain to the Thunder for draft compensation and luxury tax savings for owner Josh Harris — the guy whose net worth is estimated at $12 billion and had multiple phone calls and emails with Jeffrey Epstein over a span of years from 2013 to 2016. Moves expressly made to save money for billionaire owners are always tough to swallow, but especially in this case, given how good and generally delightful McCain has been.
I'll let FanSided NBA expert Chris Kline speak for Philly fans:
"Given the state of the East, however, ducking the tax this season, with Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid both playing at an All-NBA level, feels especially egregious. Philadelphia's path has not been this clear in a while, and there's no telling how long this Embiid renaissance actually lasts. The Sixers had an obligation to Embiid, and to their fan base, to make the most of the opportunity. Philadelphia's competitive timeline is transient."
...
"But given McCain's unique traits and not-insubstantial upside, this was a weak sell-low, tax-ducking maneuver from Philly. Morey will attempt to justify it by waxing poetic about financial flexibility, but this was weak sauce from the Sixers all the way."
Winner: Oklahoma City Thunder
On the other side of this deal is the Thunder, owner of the best record in the NBA and now the proud new employer of McCain. Adding him to the depth already on this roster is, honestly, an embarrassment of riches.
McCain has been struggling a bit this year, but remember he had thumb surgery in October just before the season started. And he averaged 15.3 points on a 58.9 true shooting percentage in 23 games as a rookie before a meniscus tear ended his season. He's a fantastic shooter with real upside as a secondary creator. He's also just 21 and has two more years on his rookie contract before the Thunder will have to worry about extending him.
Using a first-round pick to upgrade from Ousmane Dieng to McCain and buy themselves an extra two years with that roster spot being paid as a rookie contract is an absolute masterstroke. He probably won't have much to do with the Thunder winning a title or not this year, but he certainly doesn't hurt, and these kinds of steady, relentless transactional wins are why the Thunder are in this place to begin with. It doesn't look like that will be changing any time soon.