It has been a challenging season for Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Greek Freak has been injured and has played only 36 games this season. Reports indicate he may wish to leave Milwaukee, where the team has moved from playoff contention to the lottery. However, the Bucks did not trade him this season.
As Antetokounmpo’s absence continues to stir controversy within the league, speculation has grown among pundits who believe that trading him would have been the best course of action.
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith Calls Out Doc Rivers
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, appearing on First Take, wonders if Bucks’ coach Doc Rivers was the reason the Bucks held on to Antetokounmpo.
“The story here to me, based on what Shams said [ESPN NBA Insider Shams Charania], based on what Windy [ESPN NBA Insider Brian Windhorst] just said… is Doc Rivers,” Smith said.
“They made a mistake holding onto him. The real question is, was it just the organization upstairs, or was it Doc Rivers and the organization all aligned in making a decision.”
—@stephenasmith on the Bucks deciding to keep Giannis over trading him ✍️ pic.twitter.com/B1QX6ZfLvZ
— First Take (@FirstTake) April 8, 2026
Smith believes Rivers is likely done coaching, noting that he is mentioned as seeing his grandchildren, which makes it even stranger that they held on to Antetokounmpo.
“If you know that whether it is of your volition or it’s something you’re going to be compelled to do that coming into the season this could be it for you and you hear you star inside say ‘I want out,’ you’ve got to move him,” Smith explained. “You can’t have this season with him and hold on to him. You can’t do that because you get what you’re getting right now.”
Smith explained the bottom line: Antetokounmpo doesn’t want to be there, and the Bucks don’t have the assets to improve the team.
The ESPN analyst believes that the decision was a mistake.
“They made a mistake keeping him,” Smith said. “Was it the front office, Doc Rivers, or both making a clearly flawed decision?”
If Antetokounmpo truly asked to be dealt and told the Bucks he no longer wanted to be there, it probably made sense to deal him and avoid an offseason (plus all the talk during this season) full of rumors and negative publicity.
No matter who was responsible – Rivers or someone else in the front office – this kind of ongoing press coverage is unlikely to benefit anyone in the organization.
Adding to their woes, the Bucks enter Wednesday night’s game with a record of 31-48. They are 10 games out of the final play-in spot and have already been eliminated from any postseason contention, which further underscores why trading Antetokounmpo might have been the right move.
Since winning the championship in 2021, the Bucks have advanced beyond the first round only once, in 2022, when they were defeated by the Celtics in seven games. It has been three straight first-round exits since then, including the last two to the divisional rival Pacers.
In an attempt to bolster their roster, the Bucks signed veteran Myles Turner away from the Pacers this offseason. However, this move has not panned out, as Turner is averaging just 11.9 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 43.8% from the field and now dealing with an ankle injury.
Of course, dealing with an all-time great like Antetokounmpo isn’t an easy thing to do, especially with the 31-year-old still playing at a high level. Despite his injuries, he’s averaged 27.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game while shooting a scorching 62.4% from the field.
Matching salaries may also be difficult. Antetokounmpo is owed $58,456,566 next season and has a player option worth $62,786,682 for the 2027-2028 season.
It will be interesting to see how the Bucks handle the offseason: whether they make one more attempt to upgrade the roster, which would be extremely difficult given their lack of assets, or if they decide to deal Antetokounmpo and begin their rebuild.
