Resetting the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade market: Why 18 teams are plausible suitors

The Bucks' season is over, and Giannis Antetokounmpo doesn't know if he'll play for them again... so what does his trade market look like as the playoffs begin?

Sam Quinn

Apr 13, 2026

9:33 am ET

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14 min read

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When the Milwaukee Bucks considered offers for Giannis Antetokounmpo at the trade deadline, discussions seemed to center around four teams. Reports have suggested that the New York Knicks are the team Antetokounmpo is most interested in playing for. The Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat are frequent star chasers trapped in the middle of the standings who went hard after Antetokounmpo as an all-in gambit. And the Minnesota Timberwolves became inevitable sleeper willing to break up its existing core for the sake of uniting Antetokounmpo with another superstar in Anthony Edwards.

Other teams reportedly called, but a trade of that magnitude is so difficult to execute in-season that the field was inevitably going to be relatively small. Some teams don't have the contracts to swing for a max player in February. Others are hamstrung by an apron. Some just don't feel ready to tear down their rosters on the fly.

But everything changes in the offseason, when the apron slate is wiped clean, roster sizes are expanded and everyone knows the draft order. The offseason has arrived for the Bucks. Their season ended on Sunday with their 50th loss and Doc Rivers stepping down as head coach.

As we speak, there are surely 29 teams gaming out scenarios in which they may or may not decide to chase Antetokounmpo, a two-time MVP. Some of them will eventually realize they have no realistic hope of acquiring him. Others will decide willingly to sit the sweepstakes out.

Antetokounmpo spoke with The Athletic on Sunday. He said he didn't know whether or not he had already played his last game for Milwaukee. "It's not up to me anymore," he said. Antetokounmpo added that he is unsure on whether or not he'd sign an extension with the Bucks if it's offered.

"Until we get to October, it's eight months, seven months," he said. "It's a long time. But somebody has to offer you that for you to sign. I haven't been offered an extension. So, if that is on the table, then I will try to make the best decision for me and family. But if it's not on the table, then I have to focus on how can I prove my worth and get on the floor and do what I do."

So with Milwaukee's season wrapped up, let's reset the Antetokounmpo market.

Who are the teams who could seriously mull runs at Giannis? What would need to happen for their pursuits to be viable? Who is waiting on playoff or lottery results? Who needs to decide whether or not they're willing to part with a specific, core player? Below are the 18 teams that are, on any realistic level, plausible suitors for Antetokounmpo. They are sorted into five groups. In the weeks and months to come, this field will inevitably whittle down. The final number will be smaller than this. Think of this as setting the stage for what's to come.

Probably prepared to go all in

- Golden State Warriors

- Miami Heat

- Minnesota Timberwolves

The Warriors are known to have offered their four available first-round picks for Giannis at the deadline. That figure jumps to five at the draft, and if Golden State's Play-In Tournament ends in a loss as expected, one of those picks will start the lottery from the No. 11 slot. The offer, all told, looks slightly more appealing now than it did in February. The same can broadly be said for Miami, who is also a play-in team and could therefore be in the lottery. The Heat go from two tradable first-rounders to four, and the players they dangled at the deadline, most notably Kel'El Ware and Tyler Herro, are obviously still available.

Barring lottery luck, neither is going to be at the top of the Milwaukee's list of suitors. Remember, future first-round picks look a bit less valuable as trade assets in light of the expected changes to the lottery. While there's more variance baked into those picks, the best picks (essentially, the ones you'd be betting on deep in the future when Antetokounmpo is old or retired) will no longer have especially high odds at jumping to the top of the draft. But as far as fallbacks go, the Bucks could do worse. The Heat are organizationally opposed to tanking. They've spent years waiting on a proven star to launch them back into contention. The Warriors need someone to give Stephen Curry a chance to contend at the end of his career. Aside from their franchise players (Curry for Golden State, Bam Adebayo for Miami), both teams figure to be willing to offer anything Milwaukee wants.

Minnesota's situation isn't as obviously desperate, but Tim Connelly has never needed obvious desperation to act. He traded Karl-Anthony Towns off of a trip to the Western Conference finals. He's proactive, and Minnesota, in all likelihood, is not making