The Milwaukee Bucks reportedly asked the Cleveland Cavaliers for Evan Mobley and draft picks in a trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Bucks‘ superstar has been the subject of trade rumors all year long after the team had a terrible season and missed the playoffs for the first time in a decade. The team ended up replacing head coach Doc Rivers with Taylor Jenkins as soon as the season ended, so there will be a new man behind the Bucks’ bench next year. But will Antetokounmpo be back?
Bucks Asked the Cavaliers for Mobley and Draft Picks
As one of the NBA’s most elite players, Antetokounmpo is obviously in high demand when it comes to a potential trade. Other NBA teams did reach out to the Bucks at the deadline, with rumors at the time suggesting the Golden State Warriors were hot on the trail, as were the New York Knicks. Ultimately, however, Antetokounmpo stayed put in Milwaukee, though the team is expected to revisit trade talks at the draft and into the offseason.
One team that called the Bucks to ask about Antetokounmpo was the Cavaliers. According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line Substack, the Cavaliers inquired as to what it would take to land the Bucks’ superstar in a trade, and were told it would cost a pretty penny: the former NBA Defensive Player of the Year Mobley, plus all of the Cavaliers’ future draft picks.
“The Cavaliers, league sources say, contacted the Bucks about Giannis before the deadline as well … and were told it would take Evan Mobley and all of Cleveland’s available draft capital to get it done. That’s a trade construction that presumably would have Mobley stans scoffing, but it’s a move that no shortage of rival executives I’ve discussed it with say they would make,” Fischer wrote.
Bucks Asking a Pretty Penny for Their Superstar
Based on this reported ask from the Bucks to the Cavaliers, it’s clear that Milwaukee is asking a pretty penny for their stud power forward, and for good reason, as Antetokounmpo is one of the best basketball players in the world. A two-time NBA MVP who won the NBA Championship with Milwaukee in 2021, Antetokounmpo made the First All-NBA team the last seven years in a row before missing the games eligibility requirement this season due to injuries, only playing in 36 games. So, it’s obvious why the Bucks want a big trade package back in return if they deal him.
That being said, Antetokounmpo only has one more guaranteed season on his contract left at $58.5 million, with a player option for a second year at $62.8 milllion that he will surely decline to sign a new, maximum-salary contract. For any team that acquires the superstar, they will need to make sure he signs an extension, or else they wouldn’t give up the necessary assets to get him without a guarantee he’s staying for the long haul.
We’ll see this summer if the Cavaliers circle back and talk to the Bucks again about Antetokounmpo, as it will likely depend on how their playoff run this year goes. While Mobley and all of their draft picks are a high price to pay, it might ultimately be worth it to Cleveland if they think “The Greek Freak” is the missing piece for an NBA title.
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