Celtics Get Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks Get Absurd Haul In League-Changing NBA Mock Trade
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The Freak wants out. Kind of. Maybe. Possibly.
Since his Milwaukee Bucks were handily eliminated by the eventual Eastern Conference champion Indiana Pacers in round one of the 2025 playoffs, we’ve heard whispers that former MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo wants out of the Badger State—which is totally understandable, as explained by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst:
“[T]he Bucks won a championship in 2021 and validated everything and everyone. Having said that, they have lost steam. They've exited in the first round of the playoffs in three consecutive years and haven't made it past the second round since the title run. They have traded their first-round pick or its swap rights for the next six years and traded their second-round selection for the next six years, hampering their ability to restock the roster.”Brian Windhorst
Windhorst has a point. Thus, so does Giannis.
Freak In?
All that said, things may be settling down in Milwaukee, as team president Peter Feigin claimed last week.
"Giannis loves Milwaukee, Milwaukee loves Giannis." @Bucks President Peter Feigin says they're in a good place with their superstar 🤝 pic.twitter.com/p8F4kokWEA
— NBA TV (@NBATV) July 14, 2025
Feigin brushed off the Greek Freak rumors, telling NBA-TV, “We kind of laugh internally. It’s where we’ve been for ten years. Giannis loves Milwaukee. Milwaukee loves Giannis. We’re in a good place. We feel great about it. It’s business as usual. We’re looking forward to next season.”
Team presidents in every league in every country on every planet, however, have been known to distort what we in the sports industry like to call “the truth,” so it’s distinctly possible Feigin is blowing some big-time smoke.
And there are 29 superstar-starved NBA franchises who hope he’s doing just that.
Freak Out?
If the Bucks decide to move on from Antetokounmpo, every team in the Association will want in, but few will have the resources to get the deal across the finish line.
One team that might have the horses: the Boston Celtics, who could put together a super-tempting package of an All-Star vet, young and proven depth, and significant draft capital—a haul few, if any NBA GMs could match.
A Celts/Deer deal might look a little somethin’ like this:
Boston Celtics receive:
- Giannis Antetokounmpo
- A.J. Green
Milwaukee Bucks receive
- Jaylen Brown
- Anfernee Simons
- Payton Pritchard
- 2026 first-round draft pick
- 2028 first-round draft pick
- 2030 first-round draft pick
(Note: Another team—or multiple teams—would need to be roped in to appease the salary cap gods.)
Why It Could Work For Boston
With Jayson Tatum on the shelf for most, if not all of the 2025-26 NBA season, Boston’s upcoming campaign is a wash, so if they roll into the year undermanned, who gives a rip? The following season, they’ll have Tatum and Giannis sharing the floor, so a sub-.500 record this campaign won’t be super-devastating.
In 2026-27, Boston could field a starting five featuring Antetokounmpo, Tatum, Derrick White, Sam Hauser, and a center TBD. Will that get them out of the East? It’ll be tight—their bench will be thin, thin, thin, and the New York Knicks will be really, really, really good—but they'll be in the mix.
Why It Could Work For Milwaukee
A post-Freak starting lineup of Brown, Simons, Pritchard, Kyle Kuzma, and Myles Turner—with Bobby Portis, Gary Trent Jr., and Kevin Porter Jr. anchoring the second unit—puts Milwaukee right back into the championship conversation.
And some quick math tells us that Boston’s three future firsts combined with their own six future firsts gives them (checks calculator) nine firsts between now and 2032, all of which will keep them in the championship conversation for years to come.
Why It Won’t Work For Fantasy Players
With Kuzma as his only potent running buddy, the Milwaukee version of Antetokounmpo has a good chance to post the scariest statistical season of his career in 2025-26. Same deal if an iteration of this trade comes to fruition, as the C’s will run out Giannis, Hauser, Derrick White...and that’s pretty much it, meaning the Freak will be an Jokic-level fantasy force.
That is, until Jayson Tatum reenters the building.
Once the former Dookie finds his form, Giannis’ numbers will take a nosedive—but his chances at a second ring will skyrocket, so he would not possibly care less.
Meanwhile up in Milwaukee, Brown and Simons—both of whom were solid fantasy options in 2024-25—will be in the same situation: Not enough balls to go around. They’ll do wonders for the Bucks’ win total, but not for fantasy players, so come your draft day, youn can knock them down a round or two.
Why It Won’t Work, Period
In theory, this deal is good enough: Boston lands a second superstar, while Milwaukee reboots for the coming decade.
But since there won’t be much in the way of incentive for another franchise (or two) (or three) to help get the deal across the finish line—remember, most of Milwaukee's and Boston's blue chip options will be spoken for—the chance of something like this coming to pass is slim.
And lest we forget, apparently Giannis loves Milwaukee, and Milwaukee loves Giannis, and they’re in a good place, and they’re looking forward to next season.
Kind of. Maybe. Possibly.
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-82121a1351894b8089c555f4b4b69420-1d609352940036e7455770363a74a2e9.png "Alan Goldsher")
Alan Goldsher has written about sports for Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Apple, Playboy, NFL.com, and NBA.com, and he’s the creator of the Chicago Sports Stuff Substack. He’s the bestselling author of 15 books, and the founder/CEO of Gold Note Records. Alan lives in Chicago, where he writes, makes music, and consumes and creates way too much Bears content. You can visit him at http://www.AlanGoldsher.com and http://x.com/AlanGoldsher.