Between potentially all-revealing social media posts and the signing of Myles Turner, the Milwaukee Bucks appear to be on track to keep Giannis Antetokounmpo for at least the offseason, if not the full 2025-26 season. Unless they aren’t. In that situation, the San Antonio Spurs should be regarded a virtual lock to sign him.
During a recent appearance on NBA Today, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne stated that Giannis seemed to have made no definitive decisions about his future. “My sense is, just from conversations around the league, I don’t think anything will be decided on his end until August, September,” she told me. “Whether he goes or stays, that kind of decision doesn’t come until late in the summer.”
Anyone hoping their team can lure Giannis away from Milwaukee will be overjoyed with this latest development. However, unless you root for the Spurs, don’t get too thrilled.
Other NBA teams cannot compete with the Spurs’ best Giannis trade offer.
If and when Giannis becomes available, there will be plenty of suitors. Twenty-nine clubs will contact Bucks general manager Jon Horst by phone, email, WhatsApp, Signal account, and possibly even carrier pigeon.
Good luck finding a team that can beat the Spurs. They have two top-tier prospects, Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle, to help jumpstart Milwaukee’s post-Giannis era; numerous ways to match money; and first-round picks to spare even after trading for De’Aaron Fox.
The Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder are the only teams capable of outperforming San Antonio’s finest offers. However, if Giannis feels compelled to leave this offseason, neither appears to be a legitimate threat.
Oklahoma City will not go nuclear following a title. Houston, meanwhile, is struggling to put together packages despite acquiring Kevin Durant, extending Jabari Smith Jr., and re-signing Fred VanVleet. Until the middle of December, Alperen Sengun will almost certainly be the matching salary, and he alone will not suffice. The Rockets’ hopes may falter unless they add Durant (who Milwaukee will not want) or Amen Thompson.
The Spurs are no longer under immediate threat. New York and Miami do not have the assets to make a serious push at Giannis. Likewise for the Golden State Warriors. The Atlanta Hawks are dark horses given that they own Milwaukee’s initial picks in 2026 and 2027. But will they have enough left over to optimize the Giannis-Trae Young tandem if they have to include Zaccharie Risacher and Jalen Johnson in any trade?
Except for the Dallas Mavericks placing Cooper Flagg on the table, San Antonio is suddenly alone.
It’s time to reconsider Giannis’ availability on the trade market.
Following the most recent round of transactions, many are predicting Giannis’ return to Milwaukee with Sharpies. The Bucks would not have waived and stretched Damian Lillard, incurring $22.5 million in dead money every year through 2029-30, unless they knew it would retain Antetokounmpo in town.
Not if Shelburne’s information is correct. There is no reason to suppose otherwise. Not only was Giannis (supposedly) stunned by the Bucks’ decision to sign Turner, but rival front offices across the league have never been certain he would stay.
This includes the Spurs. They, like the Miami Heat and the New York Knicks, withheld assets in Kevin Durant trade talks while they waited for Giannis’ future to be resolved.
Granted, just because suitors have circled his name in skillfully doodled hearts does not guarantee the two-time MVP will become available. However, there is enough evidence to suggest that Milwaukee acquired Turner without the expectation that it would deter Giannis from departing. And, very simply, this is fantastic news for the Spurs.
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