Bucks Rumors: Giannis Antetokounmpo Trade Still 'Monitored' by Rival NBA Teams

Matt Levine | 16 Hours Ago

Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The Milwaukee Bucks have turned their season around following a very poor start to the year. However, while the team was busy digging themselves out of the hole, much trade speculation started to come around the organization.

There were many rumors flying about what the Bucks would do to climb out of a hole. It even got as far as the potential for Milwaukee to possibly move stars Giannis Antetokounmpo or Damian Lillard.

The rumors around Antetokounmpo were especially strong, with many believing that it was time for Milwaukee to blow things up. However, the Bucks stuck to their principles and allowed the players on the roster to figure it all out.

Despite this, the noise around a possible trade of Antetokounmpo hasn't slowed down. Milwaukee has an aging core group of players and the Bucks could benefit from a massive trade to rebuild.

It's unlikely that the Bucks will end up trading Antetokounmpo but it seems that opposing teams are still monitoring it. According to ESPN's Tim Bontemps, opposing teams could still make a run for the Bucks star after the season is over.

It will all come down to how the Bucks finish the year even if the organization likely won't move him. The veteran star even joked about the potential of getting moved before the season started.

“If we don’t win this year, would you get fired?” Antetokounmpo asked the staffer. “Do you have it in the back of your mind, like, ‘[What] if this year doesn’t go well?’ Yeah, if we don’t win a championship, I might get traded. Yeah, this is the job we live. This is the world we’re living in. It’s everybody.”

The Bucks have no intentions of trading their franchise icon but if they were to get bounced early in the postseason once again, it could become more of a reality. Milwaukee could use all the picks and young players that they would receive in a deal but the hope is that it doesn't come to that point.

It remains to be seen what the Bucks will ultimately do or how their year will end. But don't expect Antetokounmpo to be moved anytime soon.

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