News that the Milwaukee Bucks were open to listening to offers for Giannis Antetokounmpo had fans of every team running to the trade machine, including those of the Detroit Pistons.
Trajan Langdon has repeatedly talked about patience and not skipping steps, and this move would be the exact opposite of that, but Giannis isn’t just any player.
The Pistons have mostly been connected to players like Trey Murphy III and Michael Porter Jr. who would both fill needs but aren’t in Giannis’ tier when it comes to overall impact. Before getting hurt, Giannis was playing at an MVP level and when he’s healthy, he’s one of the best players in the NBA.
This all sounds great on paper, or in video games, but in the real world, you have to give something to get something, especially when we are talking about an All-Time great.
Christian Romo of the Detroit Free Press threw out an idea that the Pistons would have to consider. Here is the trade he suggested:
I mean no disrespect to the writer, who laid out his reasoning in a compelling way, but I can’t see this being enough to land Giannis. If it is, the Pistons should leap at it.
Trading for Giannis will cost more than Jaden Ivey
If the Bucks were to consider trading the face of their franchise to a division rival, they will want to make it hurt, which means they will certainly ask for Ausar Thompson and/or Ron Holland II to go along with Ivey.
The picks are likely to be at the end of the first round, so aren’t that valuable, at least not in the immediate future.
I also have a hard time believing teams view Ivey as a centerpiece of a trade like this, as he hasn’t played big minutes this season and still doesn’t look right after a devastating injury.
Ivey will be a restricted free agent, so he’s not even guaranteed past this season and to keep him, they’d have to give Ivey a raise hoping that he rebounds to the player he was becoming before he got hurt.
Given this status, the Pistons would almost have to jump on a trade like this, as they’d be making themselves title contenders for the next two seasons at least and would only be sacrificing players who might not be on the team next season anyway.
Even if Giannis didn’t exercise his player option and left, the Pistons would still have Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren, Ausar Thompson, Ron Holland and Isaiah Stewart to build around, so this wouldn’t even be an “all-in” move.
I have serious doubts the Bucks would take this deal, but it’s an interesting idea and one the Pistons should at least explore. If they can land Giannis with Ivey and picks as the centerpieces of the trade, they become instant title contenders without sacrificing the future.