3) Houston Rockets land Giannis Antetokounmpo in potential trade
Despite questions about whether they will look to cash in their trade assets to land a superstar, the Houston Rockets make plenty of sense as a Giannis landing spot. They can easily match salaries without gutting their roster and have plenty of intriguing young players that the Bucks could want. Fred VanVleet, Jabari Smith Jr., and Reed Sheppard, plus a couple of firsts, would be hard to beat.
Milwaukee would get two recent high lottery picks, as well as two first-round picks, in the deal for Giannis. No other playoff team could make that happen, giving the Rockets a serious leg up on the competition.
Then again, there would be questions about how much better a Rockets team would be minus those players and with the addition of Giannis. They would still have Amen Thompson and Alperen Şengün, and the floor spacing would be a concern. Even so, it would improve their top-line talent.
Ultimately, it will come down to how they feel about this season and this year's playoff run. If they believe that they are still only scratching the surface, then they might opt against making a run at Giannis, but two other teams in their division might pursue him instead.
2) San Antonio Spurs form Big 4 in possible Bucks blockbuster
The San Antonio Spurs have a unique opportunity to add a superstar to pair with their rising superstar Victor Wembanyama and all-star De'Aaron Fox. The Spurs can hold onto those two stars while bringing in Giannis to form a potentially dominant trio that could challenge for championships.
It will be costly for them to do so, however, with them having to give up several members of the young court to make it happen. Even so, it is a risk they should be willing to take.
The Spurs could offer up the draft rights to the second pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, and two other first-round picks for Giannis. At first glance, it would be almost too much to give up for the Spurs, but it's not quite as lopsided as it might appear at first.
Vassell might still have value around the league as an above-average shooting guard who can knock down tough shots and defend his position. Be that as it may, he is coming off a disappointing season in which he didn't really show any improvement on either side of the ball.
With $105 million remaining on his contract, Spurs fans should be leery about him going forward. Johnson is the longest-tenured Spur, and when he's on, he is hard to stop with his ability to bulldoze his way to the rim.
However, his lack of consistent shooting has limited his ceiling and made him a hit-or-miss player who can disappear for games at times before emerging with dominant performances. He'll be missed as a fan favorite, but he isn't projected to be a huge part of their core going forward.
The second pick would be the biggest asset in this potential deal. But if it's between keeping the second pick and landing a top-15 player of all time, the Spurs should be willing to give it up. Overall, if the Spurs have the opportunity to land Giannis, they should jump at doing so, even if it accelerates their timeline.