Giannis Antetokounmpo is suddenly a viable trade option and 29 teams are now scrambling to put together their best offer. That will inevitably include the Los Angeles Lakers, which would have an opportunity to pair Antetokounmpo with Luka Doncic in a superstar duo unlike any other.
The unfortunate truth that the Lakers must first confront, however, is that they can't realistically trade for Antetokounmpo without giving up Austin Reaves.
Los Angeles is a viable destination for Antetokounmpo from a basketball perspective. With Antetokounmpo and Doncic leading the charge, the purple and gold would have two of the all-but-consensus five best players in the NBA on the same roster.
With Doncic thriving as a perimeter scoring threat and playmaker, and Antetokounmpo dominating the interior and providing elite defense, they could complement one another to perfection.
Unfortunately, the Lakers aren't exactly swimming in desirable assets. The only first-round draft pick they can outright trade is a 2031 selection, their young pieces haven't exactly emerged as franchise-altering players, and potential pick swaps may only be so appealing with a championship-caliber duo leading the charge to potential 50-win seasons.
With this in mind, the Lakers' only realistic path to acquiring Antetokounmpo seems to run through offering Reaves—and even then, it depends on a long-term commitment from him.
Including Austin Reaves is Lakers' only hope of trading for Giannis
Los Angeles could potentially swap LeBron James for Antetokounmpo to make the salaries align, but it's unlikely that the four-time MVP would want to play for a rebuilding team. It's also possible that additional trade partners could be included to facilitate a deal, with James ultimately landing on a contender.
Even still, Los Angeles would be brought back to square one with limited draft resources to offer in a potential trade and even fewer proven up-and-comers to sweeten the pot.
That makes the outgoing trade package most likely to center around Reaves and Rui Hachimura. Their respective contracts add up to roughly $32.1 million, and a combination of Maxi Kleber and Gabe Vincent's expiring deals could complete the financial alignment from there.
Milwaukee would likely also request the inclusion of some combination of Dalton Knecht, Jake LaRavia, and Adou Thiero for the sake of bolstering its rebuilding efforts.
Even then, it's easy to envision a scenario in which other franchises offer something more compelling to Milwaukee. That's exactly why there isn't a workaround to including Reaves: There's no scenario in which the Lakers can propose a truly appealing offer without him.
It's difficult to justify the Lakers trading Reaves during his leap to stardom at 28.1 points, 6.6 assists, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per game, but that's exactly why the Bucks would want the chance to build around him.
Austin Reaves would need to commit to Bucks for Giannis trade to occur
Even then, Milwaukee would be highly unlikely to complete such a trade without a guarantee from Reaves that he'd re-sign with them. He'll be an unrestricted free agent this coming summer and could thus leave the Bucks after playing mere months for them.
As such, the Lakers' dream of landing Antetokounmpo will not only require them trading Reaves, but hinges upon a commitment it can't fairly ask him to make.
With this in mind, the harsh reality may very well be that the Lakers aren't as realistic an option for Reaves as they'd like to be. There's every reason to dream of what Antetokounmpo and Doncic could accomplish as teammates, but reality doesn't appear likely to be as kind at this juncture.
Los Angeles will inevitably explore every avenue it can to find a way to trade for Antetokounmpo, but the path to doing so relies too heavily on Reaves for even the most optimistic of fans to ignore.