Can you imagine the Philadelphia 76ers making a bona fide bid in hopes of trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo? Well, if you are one grounded in reality, you probably should not. But this might have just become more than a mere pipe dream.
Early in the offseason, the whispers around the market surrounding the status of the Greek Freak is Milwaukee dominated the newsstands. A lot of people in league circles were perceiving some degree of discontent on the part of the two-time Most Valuable Player with the Bucks, especially given the misfortune that occurred to them during the playoffs.
Those murmurs, however, did not culminate into something more. Soon enough, when free agency officially kicked in, it quickly became apparent that Antetokounmpo would remain in the Cream City. But as can be gleaned from what has been reported as of late, those previously contrived sentiments of him growing weary with the only team he’s ever known could actually be real, if not imminent.
In fact, Giannis himself reportedly already toyed with the idea of skipping town. As bared by ESPN’s Shams Charania, the superstar big man was interested in joining New York over the summer, but while the Knicks and Bucks discussed a potential blockbuster deal, the former never made a serious offer to land him.
The 76ers could have what it takes to mount an offer and trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo
The biggest takeaway from this is that Giannis is obtainable, although teams would have to entice him to be interested in joining their respective ball clubs. Now, Philly was not on his rumored list of preferred landing spots when he was all the rage in the trade market, but you never know. Stranger things have happened in the league.
The 76ers, jampacked with both win-now talent and young, buildable prospects, do have the required artillery to tempt the Bucks into a blockbuster trade.
How big is Philly’s risk appetite would be the question. Given their current and nagging situations, the Bucks would probably be not interested in both Joel Embiid and Paul George, but someone like Tyrese Maxey could be worth their attention.
That is, of course, going to end up being an undesirable proposition amond the 76ers faithful. However, one could argue that with Jared McCain and VJ Edgecombe already in the fold, letting Maxey go would not be as terrible as it sounds.
Of course, we are just contriving scenarios here, but if the Philadelphia 76ers suddenly get a hankering for a drastic facelift, pushing all the buttons necessary to trade for Giannis is an option.