Sorry, Knicks fans, but acquiring Giannis Antetokounmpo is nothing more than a pipe dream
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke; AP/John McDonnell
Imagine for a moment the vision of Giannis Antetokounmpo in the blue and orange of the Knicks, one of the NBA’s brightest stars in every sense calling Madison Square Garden home while still hanging onto the prime years of his career. And dream deeper of a championship banner waving in the rafters at MSG, of Jalen Brunson and Antetokounmpo leading the parade down Broadway.
Now open your eyes and face the reality: your imagination is likely the only place you’ll see Giannis in a Knicks uniform.
Wednesday's meeting with the Charlotte Hornets took a backseat to the wild speculation rising again after ESPN reported Wednesday afternoon that Antetokounmpo and his agent have begun talks with the Milwaukee Bucks about whether his best fit might be someplace else. Pair that with Antetokounmpo’s summertime comments that the only other team he’d want to play for is the Knicks, and it’s understandable that the imagination can run wild.
When the Knicks and Bucks met for the first time this season, Antetokounmpo danced around the rumors, saying, “I don’t remember that. Right now I’m here representing my team, and that’s it.”
Bucks coach Doc Rivers dismissed the talk before Wednesday’s game, telling reporters, "I want to say one more time, for the 50th time . . . Giannis has never asked to be traded. Ever. I can't make that more clear.”
Maybe that’s true, although even Antetokounmpo has provided enough smoke to cause teams to hunt for fire.
The Knicks have shown no hesitation in making bold moves, revamping the roster over the entire tenure of the Leon Rose-led front office. And for every prediction that a deal can’t happen, the connections of Rose and William Wesley, experience of Gersson Rosas and cap magic of Brock Aller have found ways to turn this roster from one that had players who could barely stick in the NBA to a roster that is a contender for a title.
But to do that they have gone all-in already, dealing away the assets that Rose had accumulated. Now, they have little to offer that can match up with the sort of packages that teams like Oklahoma City, Houston, San Antonio, Detroit or Atlanta could put together with picks.
And, while Bucks’ GM Jon Horst may play nice now, he need only check out how Dallas GM Nico Harrison fared after negotiating with only one team when he decided to move on from Luka Doncic (spoiler: Harrison was run out of Dallas and is unemployed).
The Knicks do have salaries that can match up, piling up the likes of Karl-Anthony Towns or OG Anunoby as a starting point — with Mikal Bridges not even eligible to be traded until February after signing an extension over the summer, after the Knicks had talks with the Bucks that never got close to a deal.
While the Knicks, like every other team, work through potential scenarios and float ideas back and forth with other front offices, one team source laughed at the notion of a deal happening just because Antetokounmpo declared a love for New York. He doesn’t possess a no-trade clause, has another year on his contract after this one and a player option after that.
And while Antetokounmpo would tempt any team, he turns 31 years old on Saturday, making him older than every player but Jordan Clarkson on the Knicks’ current roster. In his 13th season in the NBA, it’s worth wondering how and when age will take its toll on him as he exited Wednesday’s game vs. Pistons three minutes in with a right calf strain and was ruled out for the night and likely longer.
Even though he has finished in the top seven in MVP balloting for nine straight seasons, he has just one championship trophy. And the Bucks are currently 9-13 with eight losses in their last nine games, including one to Washington Monday, a team deep in tank mode.
So if the Knicks ripped apart their roster to land him, there is no assurance that his arrival would bring a championship parade to New York. The Knicks already have stars and have put together a roster that was intended to maximize the star power of Brunson, who remains the center of the franchise universe.
Would Brunson be the same player if Antetokounmpo took the place of, say, Towns, needing the ball in his hands? What would the Knicks have to pile on to make a deal happen, further stripping the roster and bringing it closer to the 11 times that Antetokounmpo couldn’t get a title in Milwaukee?
The Knicks have spent years assembling pieces and at the head of it is Brunson, who may not be the player that Antetokounmpo is, but isn’t far off. Brunson finished in the top 10 in the MVP balloting in the last two seasons and arguably is as much of a leader or better than Antetokounmpo.
Take, for example, Tuesday night in Boston, when Brunson endured probably his worst game since arriving in New York. There were no leaks of a desire to add more talent to the roster or trade him to a better team. He answered every question the same way.
“I didn’t do my team any type of service,” Brunson said, later adding, "Throughout the game, I just didn’t help at all.” And there was an assurance that he could flush this performance and would be ready Wednesday for the Hornets. Antetokounmpo was that same face in Milwaukee for more than a decade.
Pairing the two together might illuminate the dreams of fans, but maybe the most realistic plan is the one that Brunson possesses: to just get better and win with what he has.
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
