After years of trying to run it back with Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Milwaukee Bucks no longer want to do everything to make that happen, or else Jimmy Haslam wouldn't have publicly said earlier this month that he wants a resolution to happen before next month's draft. They don't want to wait around for October to see whether the 31-year-old will sign an extension when he becomes eligible.
ESPN's Shams Charania reiterated this week that Antetokounmpo believes that both sides should move on, a view he reportedly has held for a few months now. It doesn't seem like he will need another month to decide on his future in Milwaukee, though that doesn't mean he won't change his mind and stick around if the Bucks are willing to re-sign him.
This is a saga that has gone on for what has felt like an eternity. Milwaukee could've ended it before the deadline by trading Giannis, as it was clear then that the season was going absolutely nowhere. It was wise for the Bucks to delay things until the summer, when teams will gain access to more draft capital, and there could be more competition.
Bucks don't want to drag Giannis saga on any longer
The best-case scenario for Milwaukee is a trade happening before the draft, so that the team could have a shot at adding another first-rounder, on top of the No. 10 pick. That would mark the start of a reset the Bucks desperately need.
Considering Giannis knows it's time to move on, he should understand that. There is no need to delay the inevitable. Milwaukee needs to rip the band-aid off and start its post-Giannis future, and that would allow him to try to win a second title elsewhere.
Now, where will that be? Minnesota? Miami? New York? Boston? Another team?
Antetokounmpo will have some sway in where he ends up next, since he has a player option for the 2027-28 season that he could decline to hit unrestricted free agency. It'd be nice if his camp and the Bucks could work together on a trade that benefits both sides, rather than things turning ugly and prolonging this saga even further.
Milwaukee doesn't want that, or else Haslam wouldn't have set the draft as a deadline. No one can say with 100 percent certainty that a Giannis trade will happen before then, but that's how things should go. In the past, the Bucks would have rather done everything except lose Antetokounmpo, but that's no longer the case.
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