As this past NBA season moved towards its annual trade deadline, the biggest name continually mentioned for a potential trade was Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Media reports and conversations on various sports talk shows linked multiple teams to the Greek Freak. However, when the trade deadline arrived, Giannis remained with the Milwaukee Bucks, even though he didn’t participate in more than six games afterward.
That led to further discussion of him being the top player teams will be vying for this offseason, and one team that quickly surfaced as a potential suitor was the Boston Celtics, thanks to eye-opening postseason remarks from Jaylen Brown.
The Celtics All-Star indicated this past season was the favorite of his career, despite it being one in which he played mostly without Jayson Tatum in the lineup as he recovered from injury. Along with that, the Celtics had a first-round exit, losing to the No. 7 seed Philadelphia 76ers.
Most would contend that it’s hard to believe Brown preferred this past season to the season his squad won the NBA Championship and when he was the NBA Finals MVP.
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On Thursday, DraftKings Sportsbook released its odds for Giannis’ team next season, and the Boston Celtics landed at second with +400 odds.
Surprisingly, the popular sportsbook indicated that Giannis will still be a member of the Bucks when he plays his first regular-season minutes. They currently have Milwaukee listed at +125, which is strong odds in their favor.
That would seem to indicate they are committed to keeping their franchise player in place, now that they’ve brought in a brand-new coach, Taylor Jenkins, who previously guided the Memphis Grizzlies to playoff appearances.
It could also signify that no other teams will have enough to make a trade for Giannis, or that the trade will occur once the season is underway.
Many outlets and sports talk shows have suggested speculative trades that would have Boston sending Brown to the Bucks along with other assets, or potentially a third team like the Atlanta Hawks getting involved to facilitate the deal, sending players to Milwaukee and receiving Brown.
Nonetheless, there will still be a lot of talk about Giannis getting traded in the coming weeks, and the odds still show other teams with a shot at landing him in some blockbuster trade. After the Celtics, the Miami Heat have +700 odds, followed by the Golden State Warriors at +900.
Golden State adding the Greek Freak to their roster would certainly be something, putting him on a team featuring four-time champion Stephen Curry, and having Steve Kerr coaching them as they attempt to achieve another banner.
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