After months of speculation, the Milwaukee Bucks have finally dealt two-time league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Bucks are trading Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to the Miami Heat for Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakucionis, three first-round picks (including No. 13), one pick swap, and one second-rounder.
The deal won’t be finalized until July 6, so it could look a little different before then, according to the report.
For the Bucks, this deal begins a rebuild. They add young, decent players and get some draft capital to continue to build out their roster.
Miami is in win-now mode with the acquisition of Antetokounmpo. They will pair the 10-time MVP with Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins, and Norman Powell, but they will need more to make this a championship-caliber roster. This trade does hurt their depth, but there’s a full offseason left, so we’ll see what they do to fill out the roster.
At 31, Antetokounmpo, who battled injuries last season, can still get it done at a high level. Last season, he averaged 27.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 5.4 assists in 36 games.
Miami will definitely be a factor next season, but will they be a championship contender? Time will be the judge of that, but again, it appears they will have to do more.
Leave a Reply