Warriors reportedly have been 'preparing for years' to go after Giannis Antetokounmpo

The Golden State Warriors lost Kevin Durant to the Brooklyn Nets last offseason but they reportedly have their sights set on another superstar, as the Warriors have been "preparing for years" to acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle says that the Warriors are hoping to acquire Giannis via a trade or through free agency. In fact, he argues that the season being shut down might even help the Warriors chances of attracting Giannis out of Milwaukee.

"Though all indications are that he's on good terms with team management, league sources believe that Antetokounmpo would want out of Milwaukee if he loses confidence in the franchise's ability to win championships," Letourneau wrote. "This is why the NBA shutdown could buoy the Warriors' chances of landing their long-coveted Greek."

If the Warriors were to try and trade for Giannis, they would obviously need to pay a hefty price for the reigning MVP. It is believed that their own presumed lottery pick packaged with the pick they got from Minnesota in the trade for Andrew Wiggins would be the foundation of their offer. However, it would still likely take Giannis demanding a trade for the Bucks to even consider any offers.

The most likely path for Giannis to join the Warriors would be through free agency, as the 25-year-old is set to become a free agent in 2021. For now, it seems unlikely that he would leave the Bucks, as they hold the best record in the NBA by far this season. But perhaps the thought of getting to team up with Steph Curry and Klay Thompson would be enough to entice Giannis to look elsewhere.

Giannis has mostly avoided speculating about his long-term plans, instead choosing to focus on the season ahead of him and trying to win his first championship.

"I'm not gonna talk about it a lot this season, and I'm not going to try to address it," Antetokounmpo told reporters in September.