Apr 29, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA: Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) shoots the ball while Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam (43) defends during game five of the first round for the 2024 NBA Playoffs at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
To hear one pundit break it down, the Los Angeles Lakers have just one trade route available for acquiring nine-time All-Star Milwaukee Bucks power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo.
During a 50-win 2024-25 season, Los Angeles already pulled off the previously unthinkable, trading to acquire five-time All-NBA First Team guard Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks (plus injured center Maxi Kleber and little-used forward Markieff Morris) in exchange for just one first round pick in 2029, 10-time All-Star center/power forward Anthony Davis, and 3-and-D swingman Max Christie.
To accommodate the three players it was bringing back for the two players it was sending out, Los Angeles also flipped its rights to the L.A. Clippers’ 2025 second round pick, plus point guard Jalen Hood-Schifino, to the Utah Jazz. Dallas flipped its own second-rounder to Utah as well to complete the deal.
Could the Lakers really construct a new “Big Three” comprising Antetokounmpo, 30, and Doncic, 26 — both still in their primes — and a 40-year-old LeBron James?
Maybe, but according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, it hinges on one key voice: Giannis Antetokounmpo.
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“Could the Lakers make an offer?” Windhorst said during ESPN’s “Get Up” morning show. “Yes. Could Giannis come in and say, ‘I am going nowhere but the Lakers’? Yes. And if that happens, that would increase it. But I don’t think the Lakers or the [New York] Knicks could make an offer that’s in the top five or six. But because Giannis potentially has agency in this, then you would say that his words would matter a lot.”
Antetokounmpo has been linked to clubs loaded with draft assets and young talent, like the Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, and San Antonio Spurs, all of whom could theoretically send back multiple lottery-level draft picks plus young pieces with All-Star upside.
Would an Antetokounmpo/Doncic/James core be enough to thrive in the crowded Western Conference?
Antetokounmpo could solve a lot of the defensive issues that ailed L.A. during the first round of the playoffs, when the team’s lack of rim protection or consistent perimeter defense yielded a brisk five-game defeat at the hands of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Last year, Antetokounmpo put up impressive numbers. In 67 healthy games for the 48-34 Bucks, the 6-foot-11 superstar posted averages of 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.2 blocks and 0.9 steals.