The Golden State Warriors are not feeling very optimistic about Giannis Antetokounmpo seeking a trade to the Bay Area franchise. According to The Athletic’s Sam Amick, there have been no indications of a potential Giannis trade to the Warriors from his conversations with the team’s core players.
“The Warriors have been tied to Giannis for a long time. Does he want to be in Golden State? I don’t have total clarity on that, but there’s no smoke there to my knowledge,” Amick said on Monday’s episode of The Athletic’s “NBA Daily” podcast.
“In fact, I’ve chatted with some of their core players on that intel — and just to be clear, not to No. 30 [Stephen Curry]. And the indication was that, ‘we don’t have any reason to think that he’s trying to get here,’” added Amick.
The insider stressed that the New York Knicks and Miami Heat remain the two top Giannis trade destinations, and that his preferred list of destinations is not that long.
“It’s not a list of teams that I think is going to hold up the market.”
Giannis Calling the Shots?
Amick added that the “Greek Freak” has all the leverage and will dictate where he ends up, even though the Milwaukee Bucks are not obligated to honor his requests. Since Antetokounmpo is signed through at least 2026-27, the Bucks could very well trade their longtime franchise star for the best possible package, not to his preferred spot.
Yet, Amick noted no trade will materialize until Antetokounmpo signs off on his next destination, as he’ll likely sign an extension with his next team once he gets there.
It’s rather interesting that Antetokounmpo has shown no reported interest in ending up with the Warriors, given his past comments about a desire to play with Stephen Curry, not to mention his admiration for the Western Conference franchise.
Teams Warned About Giannis Trade
Amick’s reporting lines up with recent comments by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst that any team not on Antetokounmpo’s shortlist would be taking a gamble by trading for him.
“He can opt out next summer [2027],” Amick said. “It’s a short enough timeline wise where Giannis is in control. If he doesn’t want to come to your team, you don’t want to do it. You’d have to give up too much, and then, he’s going to bounce.”
There’s always the likelihood of a team gambling on a short, possibly a one-and-a-half-year stint with Antetokounmpo, with hopes that he will have a change of heart. That formula didn’t necessarily work for the Toronto Raptors, who traded for Kawhi Leonard in 2018, only for the defensive ace to walk as a free agent the next year — even though they won a championship in “The Klaw’s” only season in Toronto.
According to Fred VanVleet, Leonard made it clear to his Raptors teammates that he was a one-year hired gun the minute he walked into the locker room.
“He said it from day one, ‘I’m not staying here,’” VanVleet said of Leonard recently. “So, from day one, he said, ‘I don’t know why they traded for me. I don’t want to be here. I’m not staying here.’ Now, Toronto put their best bid in, man.”
Perhaps a dark-horse team could use the Raptors playbook and swing for the fences with a Giannis trade, even though the risk is likely to outweigh the reward.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Warriors Stars Shocking Stance on Giannis Trade Revealed appeared first on Heavy Sports.