The Los Angeles Lakers may not sign Giannis Antetokounmpo after all.
It always felt like a pipe dream, but man, was it hard not to buy into. Giannis Antetokounmpo on the Los Angeles Lakers would have been something.
A lot can change and at the time of writing this nothing is yet official. However, the pipe dream that Giannis Antetokounmpo would sign with the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2021 summer may officially be over.
Rob Pelinka structured everything on the Lakers for next summer. There are other intriguing options available but it might be time that we stop talking about the two-time MVP following in the footsteps of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and leaving Milwaukee for LA.
Monday night’s Jrue Holiday trade cemented that Giannis is probably staying in Milwaukee after all.
The Bucks struck a deal with the New Orleans Pelicans for former all-star and defensive standout, Jrue Holiday. The Bucks are sending the Pelicans Eric Bledsoe, George Bledsoe, three future first-round picks as well as the rights to two first-round pick swaps.
That is quite a hefty price to pay for someone who is a B-tier star, but the Bucks are all-in on winning with Giannis at the helm.
That was not the only move that was reported on Monday night as the Bucks also struck a deal with the Sacramento Kings. The Bucks are sending Dante DiVincenzo, Ersan Ilyasova and D.J. Wilson to Sacramento for Bogdan Bogdanovic in a sign-and-trade deal.
These are significant and risky, moves to make for the Bucks. There is a lot of dissecting to do about whether or not these moves were even worth it for the team. Five first-round picks is a lot for Holiday and the Bucks traded a legitimate asset in DiVincenzo, who is younger than Bogdanovic.
Time will tell if this deal was worth it for the Bucks. It does tell us one thing that pertains to the Los Angeles Lakers, though: the Bucks are going all-in for a reason — to win with Giannis.
Personally, I do not think there is any chance in the world that the Bucks would agree to trade five first-round draft picks for someone like Holiday without knowing that Giannis is in this for the long haul. Because if not, this could turn into a legitimate disaster that sets a franchise back for an entire decade, if not longer.
The chatter around the league suggests that this is the reality. Giannis is probably going to get that hefty supermax from the Bucks and will look to contend for a title alongside a supporting cast that consists of Holiday, Bogdanovic and Khris Middleton.
The last two weeks have been filled with chatter that Giannis Antetokounmpo indeed plans to sign his five-year supermax with the Bucks before the Dec. 21 deadline to do so ...
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) November 17, 2020
The Bucks just made a trade that suggests they must believe it
That is quite the contender. It is unfortunate for the Los Angeles Lakers but it fun for the sake of the NBA. Buckle up, things are getting wild.