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Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo may finally be on the trade block, and the Detroit Pistons have a way to trade for him.
ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported Wednesday, Jan. 28, the Bucks are “starting to listen” to offers for Antetokounmpo, their franchise player, two-time MVP, nine-time All-Star, NBA champion and Finals MVP. Antetokounmpo is “now ready and prepared for a trade,” either at the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline or in the offseason Charania reported, though it’s no surprise given offseason rumors.
And while the Eastern Conference-leading Pistons (34-11) haven’t been connected in any trade talks with the 18-27 Bucks, Detroit has the assets to bring Antetokounmpo to the Motor City before the trade deadline if leadership, fronted by president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon, decides to make a stunning move.
Whether either team would be interested in a trade, however, is another story.
Antetokounmpo, 31, is currently under contract until the end of the 2026-27 season (with a player option for the following year) that pays him an average annual salary of $58.4 million. That would make him the highest-paid player on the Pistons (All-Star point guard Cade Cunningham is making $46.4 million this season) and would put Detroit in a less-flexible salary-cap situation.
Antetokounmpo is eligible to sign a four-year, $275 million supermax extension Oct. 1, according to ESPN.
But a trade for Antetokounmpo would also land the Pistons one of the most dynamic players in NBA history, as the former Defensive Player of the Year is still averaging 28 points and 10 rebounds per game over 30 games in 2025-26, his 13th season in the league.
The Bucks, Charania reports, are indicating they want either a “young, blue-chip talent and/or a surplus of draft picks, and probably a combination of both things.”
Many teams that would want to trade for Antetokounmpo don’t have the assets to realistically make it happen, but the Pistons do. Let’s break down what it would take for the Pistons to land Antetokounmpo in a midseason trade.
Detroit Pistons trade offer for Giannis Antetokounmpo
Pistons get: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Garry Harris.
Bucks get: Tobias Harris, Caris LeVert, Jaden Ivey, four first-round picks (2026, 2028, 2030, 2032) and three first-round pick swaps (2027, 2029, 2031).
The breakdown: If the Bucks are ready to move on from Antetokounmpo, and Antetokounmpo signals he wants to move to a contender, it might be difficult to find a package from a contending team better than this one, though others could certainly top it with a higher-level young player.
In this legal scenario, the Bucks would receive Harris’ and Ivey’s expiring contracts (with a chance to bring back Ivey as a restricted free agent ahead of the 2026-27 season), plus LeVert and the rights to every pick the Pistons can move currently. Ivey has the pedigree as the No. 5 overall pick in the 2022 draft and has had stretches of great basketball before his leg injury 13 months ago.
In exchange, the Pistons would go all-in for Antetokounmpo, still one of the league’s most dominant forces on both sides of the ball when healthy, plus former Michigan State standout Gary Harris to fill out the bench. Antetokounmpo is under contract for the rest of this season and next, while the little-used Harris has a player option for $3.8 million for the 2026-27 season.
Would the Bucks make this trade? Maybe.
Milwaukee has been so reluctant to trade the greatest player in its franchise’s history that it might only do this if two conditions are satisfied: It gets a huge package and Antetokounmpo approves of his destination. It’s possible neither condition is satisfied in this trade scenario.
There are teams who could offer better packages for Antetokounmpo (especially the Oklahoma City Thunder which could have up to 12 first-round picks over the next four seasons) and the Bucks might be reticent to trade with the Pistons, a direct competitor in the Central Division.
Antetokounmpo might also, like most superstars, prefer to end up in a glamour market such as New York, where he reportedly was interested in landing last summer, Miami or Golden State, even if it means a worse shot at a championship this season than he would get in Detroit.
But if the Bucks are serious about starting over, they could consider this package and bargain from there, especially if the Thunder or Houston Rockets aren’t willing to make a move right now.
The Bucks have found a gem in 23-year-old guard and Detroit native Ryan Rollins, but lack a young player with the upside of Ivey.
Would the Pistons make this trade? Probably not.
As our Pistons insider Omari Sankofa II has pointed out, Ivey likely makes the most sense as the centerpiece of a potential trade package, with the former first-round pick struggling to get minutes in a crowded rotation. With the opportunity to play more on a less-crowded roster, Ivey, who turns 24 in February, would have the chance to put up the production initially expected of him.
That could be a reason the Pistons are telling teams Ivey isn’t off-limits in trade talks, according to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints. But it might make more sense to trade Ivey and picks for a secondary scorer such as Brooklyn’s Michael Porter Jr. or New Orleans’ Trey Murphy III.
The Pistons are the most likely landing spot for Porter, as predicted by USA TODAY Sports’ Lorenzo Reyes, with Reyes matching a need for shooting and offensive production. The Pistons trading for Porter or Murphy would also allow them to address their biggest need without sacrificing too many future assets.
But after the Pistons experienced a 30-win improvement in the 2024-25 season, Langdon emphasized continuity in a mostly quiet offseason.
That strategy has helped put the Pistons 5½ games ahead of everyone else in the East, and ahead of schedule in their championship contention window, which means the franchise likely will continue to prioritize home-grown development instead of splashy, win-now moves.
Or in other words, if Detroit doesn’t trade for Antetokounmpo or a borderline All-Star before the Feb. 5 deadline, Pistons fans shouldn’t be surprised.
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You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.