Lakers’ Three-Pick Giannis Antetokounmpo Trade Offer Is Already Drawing Skepticism Around the League
The Lakers reportedly put a Giannis Antetokounmpo offer in front of the Milwaukee Bucks this week. The package was three first-round picks, multiple pick swaps, and cap-filler salary. Per reports out of Wednesday night, Milwaukee’s response was the league equivalent of a polite cough.
That is not a surprise. Anyone who has watched the trade market for the last five years knows that three firsts and a smile is the floor for a top-five player, not the ceiling. The Lakers do not have a real young asset to attach because they are not allowed to trade multiple firsts in consecutive years and the ones they can trade are not coveted.
The leak itself is the more interesting story. Front offices do not let an offer for a face-of-the-league player become public unless they have a reason for the leak. The most common reasons are to pressure the other side, to manage the local fan base, or to set up a future negotiation. The Lakers’ leak smells like a combination of the last two.
Local fans are restless after the Thunder sweep. LeBron James went on his podcast this week and said the Lakers were ‘out-talented’ by Oklahoma City. Putting out a story that the front office has been chasing the best two-way player in basketball makes the team look ambitious. Whether or not the offer was ever realistic, the headline is the goal.
From the Bucks’ side, the calculus has not changed. Giannis has not publicly demanded a trade. Milwaukee general manager Jon Horst keeps repeating that the franchise plans to compete around its star. Damian Lillard is still on the roster. Doc Rivers is still the head coach. Until one of those facts changes, the Bucks have no reason to take a Lakers package light on All-Star talent and heavy on future picks of unknown value.
What would a real Giannis offer look like? A starting point is probably Brandon Miller and three firsts from a team like Charlotte, or Jaylen Brown and multiple firsts from a team like Boston, or Anthony Edwards and the Wolves’ kitchen sink. The Lakers cannot get to any of those tiers right now. They do not have the young All-Star.
If Los Angeles wants to escalate, the conversation has to include Austin Reaves and Dalton Knecht plus the picks. That gets Milwaukee a starting backcourt piece and a playable young wing. Reports do not suggest that package has been put on the table.
The smarter Lakers move might be one that no headline has mentioned. They could chase a tier-two All-Star who actually fits next to LeBron and Luka, take their lumps for one more season, and revisit a Giannis run next summer when picks unlock. That is less fun and more responsible.
Right now they are doing the inverse. They are floating an offer they know will not work, in part to look bold, in part to apply public pressure, in part to keep LeBron’s representation aware that the front office is hunting big. That is a fine short-term play. It is not the same thing as actually trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Giannis is the best player on the trade rumor mill. He is also the hardest to get. The Lakers are learning that this week.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
