Brooklyn Nets Starting to Fall Behind in Giannis Trade Rumors

Amid the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors, one team remains an outlier in terms of potential fits: the Brooklyn Nets.

Many teams linked to the Greek Freak have a foundation to acquire him and still supplement the superstar with enough talent to contend for a championship. The San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets, and Toronto Raptors remain potential suitors for Antetokounmpo, and certainly have spare assets to acquire him.

Which brings us to the Brooklyn Nets. While the three franchises listed above have a mix of draft picks and young players, the Nets would be banking on throwing in their war chest of draft picks to acquire Antetokounmpo. Their roster doesn't stack up against the other contenders for the two-time MVP.

It gets worse for Nets fans who are pro-Antetokounmpo. Reports over the past few days suggest that other teams are ahead of Brooklyn in the Giannis sweepstakes.

The Raptors and Antetokounmpo reportedly share a mutual interest, which means if he is dealt within the Eastern Conference, Toronto is more likely than Brooklyn. Furthermore, a new report from The Athletic's Kelly Iko suggests the Rockets, who have more assets to give, are still major players amid rumors.

"Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo remains a target, team sources said, but there has been recent uncertainty in the past week on Antetokounmpo’s actual availability — not to mention the potential asking price Milwaukee would require," Iko wrote.

While there aren't any new reports surrounding the Spurs and Antetokounmpo at the moment, San Antonio has more enticing assets, such as the No. 2 and No. 14 overall picks in the 2025 NBA Draft, as well as young players such as Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, and more. The Nets simply don't stack up against the Spurs, who offer pieces to immediately help the Bucks in a rebuild.

If GM Sean Marks and company aggressively pursue Antetokounmpo, they'll have to muster up an offer that Milwaukee can't refuse. Otherwise, the Bucks are more prone to take a combination of players and picks from another team, given that they would likely enter a rebuild after Damian Lillard's Achilles injury and Antetokounmpo's potential departure.