The Giannis Antetokounmpo trade has already become one of the biggest talking points of the NBA offseason, and the Milwaukee Bucks are still taking heat for how they handled it.
After months of rumors, Milwaukee finally moved Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat in June. That ended the speculation about whether the Bucks would actually deal their superstar, but it also opened a new debate: did they wait too long and leave themselves with less than they should have gotten?
Brad Botkin of CBS Sports made that case the day after the trade, arguing that Milwaukee lost leverage by dragging things out. “The Bucks waited too long to trade Antetokounmpo, and as a result were forced to execute this trade from a position of weakness, if not desperation,” Botkin said.
“That's not how you win a negotiation. What the Bucks should have done was accept the reality that the Giannis era had run its course the second the aforementioned Lillard ruptured his Achilles in the 2025 playoffs and started looking to trade him last summer.
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Botkin also questioned the return itself, saying the Bucks wound up without a true foundational piece and leaned on draft capital at the top of the deal. In his view, Milwaukee may have been better off taking Boston’s package instead.
“If the Bucks wanted a known quantity, they could've, and perhaps should have, gone with Boston's package," Botkin said. "From Boston, the Bucks reportedly could've gotten the two draft picks and Jaylen Brown -- a five-time All-Star, the 2024 NBA Finals MVP and a far more established player than any of the four the Heat included.
Milwaukee could've kept Brown or the franchise could've flipped him this summer for presumably another pretty significant return. ”
Milwaukee’s front office, though, defended the decision. In Eric Nehm’s reporting for The Athletic, Jon Horst explained that the Bucks valued balance, draft capital and flexibility.
“So, we’ve got a lot of work to do, and we championed balance and getting back foundational players that we believed in, draft capital that we thought we could utilize and capitalize on, either by drafting at some point or by using in future transactions and flexibility to make decisions," Horst said. "The Miami opportunity presented us with the best path in totality, and that’s why we did the deal.”
Not everyone is calling it a disaster. Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report labeled “They botched the Giannis Antetokounmpo blockbuster.” as his overreaction for the Bucks, but he still acknowledged that the timing could have been better.
“By the time the Bucks got around to trading away Antetokounmpo, he was entrenched as the best player in franchise history,” Buckley said. “And through that lens, Milwaukee's return package-Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel'el Ware, Kasparas Jakučionis, three firsts, a swap and a second-might seem so underwhelming to make you think the Bucks really botched this.
. @BleacherReport gave their overreaction to the Milwaukee Bucks offseason:Overreaction: “They botched the Giannis Antetokounmpo blockbuster.”“
They didn’t. Or they didn’t botch it this offseason, at least.” - @ZachBuckleyNBA pic.twitter.com/gog4bgmhDo
“Teams weren't beating that offer (especially if Milwaukee thinks the homegrown Herro is a keeper) for a 31-year-old with shooting limitations, contract uncertainty and some recent injury trouble. The Bucks just needed to rip this Band-Aid off sooner. Everyone outside of Milwaukee could see this coming and delaying the inevitable denied this club what could have been a truly ridiculous collection of incoming assets.”
That’s the real tension here. The Bucks may have waited too long, but that doesn’t automatically mean they botched the trade. The final years of Antetokounmpo’s run in Milwaukee had clearly gone off track, and a championship breakthrough didn’t look close.
What the Bucks got back from Miami does give them something to work with. Tyler Herro and Jaime Jaquez Jr. bring proven production and NBA experience.
Kel'el Ware and Kasparas Jakučionis are both under 23. Milwaukee also used Miami’s pick to draft Nate Ament in the lottery.
The Bucks probably aren’t an immediate playoff team, but the trade did leave them with a mix of players and future pieces that gives the roster a different shape than it had before. That may not erase the sting of losing Antetokounmpo, but it’s why this deal is being debated as much as it is.
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