Giannis Antetokounmpo needs to be traded, if for no other reason than to save NBA fans from the never-ending discourse and speculation about his future. This entire summer was filled with ultimately fruitless Giannis trade talk, and now we’ve been at it again for a few weeks. One way or another, something’s gotta give.
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Unlike last season’s Luka Doncic trade, which came as a complete shock to Luka himself and the rest of the league, if Giannis is traded by the Bucks, it’ll be because he explicitly tells them that’s what he wants. It’ll also be to a destination of his choosing, because with his ability to opt out of his contract next summer, no team will mortgage their future for just a rental.
Reporting last week indicated that Giannis has three criteria for where he ends up — he wants to play somewhere with some sun, he wants to play in a big market, and he wants to be able to compete for championships. To be fair, Giannis has since said that those things didn’t come from him.
If Giannis is going to be on the move, then where’s he going to go? NBA insider Marc Stein said that the Spurs and Rockets, two teams that have been rumored potential destinations, are not expected to pursue him. Sam Amick of The Athletic added to that by saying the list “might not be that long,” and he mentioned the Knicks and Heat as two possibilities.
Sam Amick says the list for Giannis preferred destinations might not be that long
“The list might not be that long if you got New York in there. You got Miami. I think Miami is worth watching. That’s another one that checks a lot of boxes. It’s not a list of teams that I think… https://t.co/eH7Nu6fmOL pic.twitter.com/JyfHKMVfg9
— Heat Central (@HeatCulture13) December 15, 2025
The Knicks are a game away from winning the NBA Cup, something Giannis pulled off last year. They’re also only two games back of the Pistons for the 1-seed in the East, and they have high quality players, such as Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby, that they could potentially entice the Bucks with.
The Heat certainly satisfy the sun part of the equation, and even with their recent four-game slide, they’re still in sixth place in the conference. They could craft a trade package around Tyler Herro and Kel’el Ware.
Other teams will certainly be interested in procuring Giannis’ services, and they each have their own selling points. The Warriors have built a winning culture and could be championship contenders if they had a core of Giannis, Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler.
The Thunder have a historically great team and more draft capital and young assets than any team in the league. Would they risk changing their championship formula to combine Giannis with SGA, though? That trade would rock the league to its core.
The Hawks have also been thrown around as an intriguing landing spot, especially with how well they’ve played in Trae Young’s absence. If they could center a package around their All-Star point guard and add Giannis to a dynamic young core, the sky’s the limit for what that team could achieve.
Giannis is still on the shelf with the calf strain he suffered earlier this month, which could slightly complicate his market. Given the rise of Achilles injuries in the NBA, plus his tenuous long-term future in Milwaukee, there’ll be no rush to bring him back too soon. There’s still almost two months until the trade deadline, though, so fans could still be waiting a while to hear anything concrete.
