Giannis Antetokounmpo: Ranking 29 Potential Destinations After Playoffs Reshape List

Updated Giannis Antetokounmpo landing spots: Playoffs reshape the list as we rank 29 potential destinations

Where will the Bucks send the NBA's biggest trade candidate? East contenders are at the top of this new list

By Sam Quinn

May 13, 2026 at 11:40 am ET • 17 min read

- - -

Is it real this time? Surely it's real this time, right? On Monday, ESPN's Shams Charania reported that the Milwaukee Bucks are seeking trade offers for star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo . The on-again, off-again trade cycle that has loomed over the NBA for the past year may mercifully be coming to an end.

Antetokounmpo will be eligible for a contract extension in October. Bucks owner Wes Edens has said that the team will either extend him or trade him, and fellow owner Jimmy Haslam has set the NBA Draft as the preferred timeline for resolution. If Antetokounmpo does not signal a willingness to extend in the coming weeks, the time for a trade has likely arrived. The draft order is set. The whole league is gathered in Chicago for the NBA Draft Combine. Let the rumors begin.

So, what are we looking for in a possible trade partner? Four factors stand out:

- A team reasonably capable of competing for the 2027 championship. Antetokounmpo is 31 and suddenly somewhat injury-prone. This is not a long-term project. If you're trading what it takes to get him, you're doing it to win here and now. - Ideally, a team in the Eastern Conference. The Athletic's Sam Amick has reported that Antetokounmpo's preference is believed to be remaining in the East. - A trade partner who can send the Bucks a top young player, a multitude of draft picks, or a present-day star in his prime. Ideally, the Bucks would get all three. - Somewhere Antetokounmpo is willing to extend. Nobody is trading all it will take to get this thing done without assurances that he would be willing to stay there.

In a way, we're early in the process. The lottery just happened, and some of these teams are still playing. In other ways, well, you've lived through the first handful of Antetokounmpo cycles. We've done this before. We have a broad idea of what the market might look like. So for now, we're going to take stock of where things sit here as we prepare for what will hopefully be the final round of Antetokounmpo trade rumors.

There are 30 teams in the NBA. One of them is the Bucks. The other 29 would probably like to trade for Giannis. So we're going to rank all 29 of them by their likelihood for actually pulling it off.

29. Sacramento Kings

It's an honor just to be nominated. How many of these lists do the Kings even make? Take some pride, guys.

28. New Orleans Pelicans

It's further East than Sacramento. So that's something. Zion Williamson wouldn't be the worst consolation star for the Bucks.

27. Phoenix Suns

They have nothing to trade. They control none of their own first-round picks until 2033. Devin Booker is a bad contract. Jalen Green is a bad contract. They're in the West. They're not a contender. Nothing to see here.

26. Memphis Grizzlies

It was a fun concept when they had Jaren Jackson Jr . given how easily he and Antetokounmpo could've fit together. Now, the Grizzlies are full steam ahead into a rebuild. They're years away from appealing to a veteran star on the floor, and even if they could, they've never been able to sell stars on the Memphis market.

25. Chicago Bulls

The Bulls are in the same boat as the Grizzlies. They're at square one. Antetokounmpo isn't looking for a square one roster. Good work getting out ahead of things though with an " actually, we're the ones who didn't want YOU " rumor last winter.

24. San Antonio Spurs

One of the few teams that falls into the "feasibly could, probably won't" category. The Spurs have the assets. Antetokounmpo would probably sign off on playing for them even in the West if winning is his true goal. But even Victor Wembanyama seems to be against this. "I know Brian (Wright) knows who we are and trusts the process. He should get Executive of the Year also for not making a move," he said after San Antonio's first-round victory. He's been consistent in wanting the Spurs to build internally and patiently. They have no reason to deviate from that course.

23. Oklahoma City Thunder

The same logic applies for the Thunder as the Spurs, with the caveat that if the Thunder lose to the Spurs, either now or later, it is feasible that they do something drastic specifically to prepare for future Wembanyama matchups. He's already beaten them four times this season. If he does so in the playoffs, that likely won't trigger an all-out panic in Oklahoma City, but it will raise enough eyebrows to get ideas like this to the table. It would just be so out of character for the Thunder to actually do this.

22. Dallas Mavericks

Could Dallas scrape together enough value with the No. 9 pick, first-rounders in 2031 and 2033, plus every non-Kyrie Irving veteran on the roster? That sounds like a stretch unless Antetokounmpo were to stick a thumb on the scale for the Mavericks , which he's unlikely to do given their conference alignment. Besides, the Mavericks have no need to rush. Nico Harrison is gone. They're operating on Cooper Flagg's timeline now.

21. Utah Jazz

It's a shame this team plays in Salt Lake City and not, say, Brooklyn, because the roster is more than ready to win with Antetokounmpo. They even have big shooters like Jackson and Lauri Markkanen , a necessity for him. But it's hard to imagine him choosing a small, Western Conference market, and even if he would, the Jazz just spent four years tanking specifically to get a prospect like the one they'll have access to at No. 2. Like Dallas, there's a timeline issue here. The Jazz are set up to win now, but the championship ceiling is tied to a teenage rookie who might not peak until Antetokounmpo retires.

20. Denver Nuggets

Denver could make the money work on some sort of Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon for Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kyle Kuzma deal, but I'm not sure what that really accomplishes for anyone. The Antetokounmpo-Nikola Jokić pairing would be lethal, but the Nuggets would have no guards and minimal shooting, and with no future first-round picks available to trade and an enormously expensive roster, minimal paths to actually finding those things. Cool idea in theory. Not practical in reality.

19. Philadelphia 76ers

Well, they don't have a lead basketball executive at the moment. That probably ends the conversation here and now. The Bucks were reportedly interested in VJ Edgecombe at the trade deadline, and the 76ers could compete if they landed Antetokounmpo, but a new GM will have the runway to wait out Philly's bad contracts and rebuild around Tyrese Maxey . There's not enough urgency for the 76ers to seriously pursue this.

18. Washington Wizards

Really, everything written about Utah applies, except the Wizards are in a more desirable Eastern Conference city. Lots of assets. Great luck in Sunday's lottery. Traded for veterans during the season. Probably view those veterans more as complements to the kids than as centerpieces for an immediate championship pursuit. Besides, Antetokounmpo wants to have the ball in his hands. Trae Young being as ball-dominant as he is makes him an iffy fit.

17. Orlando Magic

Paolo Banchero for Antetokounmpo has been bandied about as a possibly mutually beneficial solution for months now. Milwaukee gets a younger star under contract. Orlando solves its fit problems with Franz Wagner and potentially gets out ahead of its impending apron issues by consolidating salary in the deal. The hypothetical still relies on Antetokounmpo agreeing to stay in Orlando, and that seems far-fetched after the Magic's 3-1 playoff collapse against Detroit. It also assumes Antetokounmpo would be a better fit next to Wagner than Banchero is, which doesn't really make sense since he's an even more ball-dominant player who shoots even worse. This would require pretty substantial roster changes that Antetokounmpo likely wouldn't be all that eager to let them make.

16. Toronto Raptors

The Raptors have all of their picks, but with Scottie Barnes almost definitely off-limits, they don't have a surefire star to put on the table. Collin Murray-Boyles shined in the playoffs, but he's not Banchero as a franchise centerpiece. Besides, there are fit issues with Barnes, too. Neither of them can shoot, and Barnes is at his best with the ball in his hands. The picks give Toronto a bit more flexibility to deal than Orlando, but neither team is good enough to entice Giannis.

15. Atlanta Hawks

Jalen Johnson 's own agent, Rich Paul, has publicly suggested a swap for Antetokounmpo. It doesn't really make sense. The Hawks aren't good enough to trade young for old. They did however just get the No. 8 overall pick in the lottery. They wouldn't have dealt a top-four pick, but building a picks-based package starting with No. 8 might be a bit more palatable. Dyson Daniels would have to be in the deal to alleviate the shooting concerns Atlanta has, but of these three first-round East losers in the last three spots, the Hawks probably have the cleanest path to a deal and a possible extension. Atlanta is the most desirable city of the three, at least.

14. Charlotte Hornets

The East first-round teams aren't all that exciting, but this East Play-In team is where things get interesting. The Hornets have a huge draft pick surplus. Their balance sheet is relatively clean. They have three young stars who are all high-volume 3-point shooters, and what they badly need is rim pressure and defense. The basketball fit is perfect. The trade is easy enough to construct. The roster is just so young, and the market is so small. If the Hornets were two years further along their timeline and played in a slightly bigger city, they'd make the top five of this list. As it stands, Antetokounmpo probably isn't patient enough to play in Charlotte.

13. Detroit Pistons

The Pistons are still alive in the playoffs, but it would be hard to say this postseason has gone as planned for Detroit. They got pushed to seven games by a Magic team that likely beats them if Wagner stays healthy, and now, they're even with Cleveland after four. A deal would presumably be built around either Ausar Thompson or Jalen Duren , whose fit is coming into question this postseason as the Pistons have completely failed to score with the two of them on the floor. Cade Cunningham is probably the best long-term teammate bet in the Eastern Conference, but the rest of the roster is light on shooting and already enormous. It's not overly likely. The Pistons believed enough in this roster concept to bring it into the playoffs without deadline upgrades. But no team with Cunningham and Antetokounmpo would have this much trouble scoring.

12. Indiana Pacers

Rick Carlisle  has hinted that the Pacers had a win-now contingency plan if they failed to keep their top-four pick in the lottery. Well, that pick is now gone. Might Antetokounmpo be that contingency plan? The Pacers are certainly an Eastern Conference contender. They made the Finals a year ago. They can build an offer around Pascal Siakam and their remaining draft picks -- only 2029 is still gone from the Ivica Zubac trade. It would be bolder than this franchise is used to, and it would require both sides to bury the hatchet on the rivalry that developed between them over the past few years, but it's a viable way for Antetokounmpo to factor meaningfully into the title picture again.

11. Los Angeles Lakers

They're here because of Lakers nonsense. It's that simple. Star partnerships are often negotiated in smoky backrooms, and if Luka Dončić pushes for him hard enough, it's at least somewhat plausible that Antetokounmpo tells the Bucks "send me there or I'm signing with them in 2027 free agency." The Lakers only have three first-round picks to deal,

_Originally reported by [CBS Sports](https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/updated-giannis-antetokounmpo-landing-spots-may-13/)._