News - 'Y’all better figure it out': 4x NBA Champion on the stakes of Giannis Antetokounmpo trade

Draymond Green has never shied away from weighing in on major NBA conversations, and the ongoing uncertainty about Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future in Milwaukee has already caught his attention. Giannis Antetokounmpo and his agent, Alex Saratsis, have begun discussions with the Bucks about the direction of the franchise, and according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the chatter about a possible departure has reached a whole new level. The whispers grew louder after Antetokounmpo appeared to remove posts connected to Milwaukee from his Instagram. Green explained why trading a superstar of Giannis’ caliber isn’t simple. “We all know Giannis wants to compete at the highest level. People made a lot of noise about him deleting all Milwaukee Bucks references on his Instagram. If you’re Giannis and you’re pressing the team to act, those are the kinds of moves you’d make to push the team to realize, ‘I’m not happy … It’s going public now. You better figure it out.’” the Warriors forward remarked on his show, The Draymond Green Show. Green also pointed out the financial side of the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade. Beyond appearances, the real challenge lies in the money. “What I will say is that it isn’t easy to trade someone who makes $50 million, because in most cases you'd have to gut your whole team just to make the salaries work; it limits the number of teams Giannis can go to. He’ll have a list of teams he’d be comfortable moving to, which he’ll share with the Bucks, and I think they’ll try to make it happen.” Antetokounmpo is set to earn $54.13 million next season and is under contract through 2027, a figure that immediately complicates trade calculations for nearly every contender. Even the Golden State Warriors, whom Green called one of the more intriguing fits alongside Steph Curry, are already paying Curry and Jimmy Butler more than $50 million each. With Milwaukee currently in 11th place with a 10-15 record in the Eastern Conference and far from championship contention, Green suggested the team would likely try to accommodate Giannis if he officially requested a trade.