Milwaukee Bucks power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo seemingly shut down rumors about the possibility of him being traded by saying that he hopes to once again lead the Bucks to the NBA Finals.
“There are two great teams that got there,” Antetokounmpo told the Brazilian media outlet Coast to Coast when discussing the 2025 NBA Finals. “Indiana, with my friend Pascal Siakam, is reaping its rewards, and on the OKC side, you’ve got the MVP right there. I’m rooting for good basketball. That’s it. The Finals are something else, I hope to be back soon with the Bucks.”
Rumors had been circulating that Antetokounmpo might have forced his way out of Milwaukee via a trade this off-season after the Bucks lost to the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs. As recently as late May, there was “optimism” around the league that Antetokounmpo would be available on the trade market.
Reppin’ in Rio.
(via giannis_an34/IG) pic.twitter.com/okEhzDJfCz
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) June 10, 2025
“Around the combine, two weeks ago, two and a half weeks ago, there was no shortage of optimism, of hope, of excitement from other teams that they were going to be able to potentially make an offer to get Giannis Antetokounmpo into their franchise, into their building,” explained Yahoo Sports NBA reporter Jake L. Fischer on June 5th. “Of late, I’d say that that confidence has been replaced with skepticism.”
The trade rumors surrounding the Bucks and Antetokounmpo stem from a report last month from ESPN’s Shams Charania, when sources told him that the Greek Freak “has not made any firm decisions on his Bucks future,” and that Antetokounmpo was “open-minded about exploring whether his best long-term fit is remaining in Milwaukee or playing elsewhere.”
“From talking to agents, team executives, whoever, there is not a lot of belief right now at this juncture,” Fischer continued. “I’d say for now, talking to people around the league, the assessment and the expectation is that they’re going to believe it when they see it. That someone who is valued being the franchise face, the central lynchpin of the Bucks franchise, is going to want to play somewhere else.”
Earlier this morning, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst confirmed what Fischer reported five days ago.
“Right now, there is no Giannis Antetokounmpo trade market, there is no Giannis Antetokounmpo trade discussions. He has not asked for it. The Bucks are not looking to trade him.”
– Brian Windhorst
(via @GetUpESPN)pic.twitter.com/PpdhIK8Y7r
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) June 10, 2025
“Right now, there is no Giannis Antetokounmpo trade market. There is no Giannis Antetokounmpo trade discussions,” Windhorst said on ESPN’s Get Up. “He has not asked for it. The Bucks are not looking to trade him.”
Even if Antetokounmpo doesn’t get traded, Brian Windhorst thinks a lot of big moves will take place this off-season.
“I had an executive tell me yesterday that he thinks this could be, could be, could be an explosive summer,” he said on a June 1st episode of The Hoops Collective podcast.
