Giannis Antetokounmpo was not traded prior to the deadline this season, but the rumors have not completely gone away with the offseason looming. In fact, the Milwaukee Bucks star is already being linked to a very surprising landing spot.
The Brooklyn Nets had interest in Antetokounmpo prior to the deadline and might circle back again in the offseason, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post. The Nets will look into star players, and the organization maintains that it intends to try and contend as soon as next season.
The notion of Antetokounmpo landing with the Nets is a strange one for a host of reasons. The most obvious is the fact that the team is 17-51 and one of the NBA’s worst. It is difficult to imagine the Nets pulling that off even if they did somehow trade for Antetokounmpo.
The Nets are also relying on strong drafts, which is certainly risky considering last year’s class did not get good reviews. Those players are still very young, and only Egor Demin has been a regular starter this season. The team does have another lottery pick coming up this season, which would be a chance to land an impact rookie.
Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, has made it clear that he wants to play for teams that are contending for championships every year. The Nets are nowhere close to that, and it’s fair to question whether they would be even with him on the roster, so this probably isn’t a destination he would be terribly enthusiastic about.
