If the Oklahoma City Thunder wanted to, they could do NBA fans everywhere a favor by ending the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade speculation. If they were interested in acquiring the superstar, they'd easily jump to the top of the Bucks' list because of their draft assets and young talent. As Marc Stein of The Stein Line reported on Monday, though, executives he spoke with after the WCF don't think Sam Presti would do something like that (subscription required).
There are still questions about whether a trade will actually happen, with Antetokounmpo recently saying in an interview with School of Hard Knocks that he hopes to stay in Milwaukee for "many more" years. The back-and-forth is beyond tiring at this point. If he wants to win another championship, and that's something he said he prioritizes above all else, it won't happen with the Bucks.
The belief is that if he does inform Milwaukee he doesn't plan to sign an extension when he becomes eligible on Oct. 1, he will want to go to another team in the East.
Oklahoma City doesn't fit that description, but there's reason to believe that if the Thunder were interested, Antetokounmpo would probably be much more open to going to the West. Why wouldn't he want to join what they have?
Thunder could easily win Giannis Antetokounmpo trade sweepstakes
Even with how Chet Holmgren looked in the conference finals against Victor Wembanyama, a player who is only just beginning to terrorize the rest of the league, the Thunder don't need to usher him out the door in favor of a player like Antetokounmpo. Presti isn't short-sighted. Yes, Giannis could be a Wemby stopper, but his injury history and age (he'll turn 32 in December) complicate matters further.
If Presti and OKC were a step away from hitting the panic button, a Giannis trade would make sense, but the Thunder are still just fine, even with their roster set to get significantly more expensive next season. They can cut costs without moving on from Holmgren's contract to sign Antetokounmpo to a less expensive deal.
The Thunder certainly shouldn't want to give up any of their assets for Giannis, and with the Bucks knowing what they have, Milwaukee would push for several first-round picks. Oklahoma City has two first-rounders in this year's draft (Nos. 12 and 17), and it probably won't be able to afford both, but that doesn't mean Presti should throw them in a package for Antetokounmpo.
Milwaukee can cross its fingers and hope that OKC will change its stance in the coming weeks, leading up to the draft, but there is no justifiable reason for the Thunder to do that.
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