Believe it or not, there’s a world in which the Oklahoma City Thunder could put together a blockbuster trade package for Giannis Antetokounmpo and not have to surrender Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams or Chet Holmgren. That’s the beauty of monopolizing first round picks the last five years.
Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley predicted potential trade frameworks for Antetokounmpo. For the Thunder, Buckley has the team surrendering Isaiah Hartenstein, Cason Wallace, Nikola Topić, and four first-round picks.
The Oklahoma City Thunder could take over the NBA with a blockbuster move for Giannis Antetokounmpo
This is obviously under the assumption that Giannis actually wants out of Milwaukee. He’s been loyal to the Bucks his entire career – similar to that of Damian Lillard in Portland – and he’s already won a championship, he may want to retire a Buck at this point in his career. That said, it’s certainly something to think about as the Bucks stray further and further from contention in the Eastern conference after their third-straight first-round exit.
If the Thunder use their draft capital to lure in a perennial superstar this summer and they’re able to retain their top stars, the rest of the NBA should be terrified of the Thunder. Not a single team in the East or West would be able to contain an All-star level roster.
The Thunder could do exactly what the Golden State Warriors did when they poached Kevin Durant from OKC to chase championships after LeBron James led the Cleveland Cavaliers to a championship down 3-1.
Oklahoma City could end up reaching the NBA Finals this year. In fact, if they don’t, it would be the sole reason they pursue one more star for this team. Last year, the Thunder had championship aspirations, but their playoff inexperience caught up to them.
This year, there are no excuses and if they do come up short, they’ll have the ammo to bring in a player that will undoubtedly carry them to a championship. Antetokounmpo could be the player that not only gets them over the hump, but turns this OKC team into one of the best in NBA history.
Giannis in OKC is a really good fit too because they can already space the floor with Holmgren, Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams. Lou Dort is a 3-and-D type of player while Alex Caruso can run the second unit. Giannis isn’t a prolific shooter, but on this team he wouldn’t need to be.
He and Gilgeous-Alexander could dominate in the pick-and-roll with shooters all around them. It would almost be overkill for this team. There wouldn’t be a weakness, their offense wouldn’t take a hit at all and their defense becomes that much better.
OKC could run the NBA for years if they were to land Antetokounmpo this summer. The scary thing is they’d do it for essentially a bunch of picks they won’t need and role players they could replenish through the draft with their remaining first round picks.
It’s a win-win for an organization looking for its first championship since relocating to Oklahoma City. This year, they should have a championship-or-bust mentality. If they do bust, they have the pieces to get just about any player they want to immediately become one of the best constructed rosters in NBA history.