The Milwaukee Bucks have traded the two-time MVP to the Miami Heat.
Despite speculation growing throughout Monday that Giannis Antetokounmpo would be traded to the Boston Celtics, he was officially dealt to the Miami Heat on Monday night.
According to Shams Charania of ESPN, the two-time MVP was dealt for a package of draft picks and controllable players, rather than a package headlined by Jaylen Brown, which is what the Celtics were reportedly offering.
Per Sharania:
BLOCKBUSTER: The Milwaukee Bucks are trading franchise icon Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to the Miami Heat for Tyler Herro, Kel'el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakucionis, 3 first-round picks (including No. 13), 1 pick swap and 1 second-rounder, sources tell ESPN.
Why did this offer beat Boston's?
Any deal is in the eyes of the beholder. If the Bucks were looking to keep contending in a post-Giannis world, then accepting a trade offer for Brown was clearly the best move. Brown finished sixth in the MVP voting this season after averaging 28.7 ppg. He's a five-time All-Star and a two-time All-NBA selection. He's the best individual player that Milwaukee could have gotten.
However, if the Bucks were looking to step back and rebuild, then a package headlined by draft picks was the way to go. Evidently, that's what they've decided to do. By offloading the money of Giannis and Portis, the Bucks are also getting significantly cheaper, which can help them gear up once again in the near future.
Where do the Celtics go from here?
It's hard to say. We wrote earlier on Monday night that the C's needed to win this trade battle because it would be hard for Jaylen Brown to return to the organization like nothing happened.
Well, now we are in that spot. Can Brad Stevens possibly massage the situation or is this trade conversation a bridge too far for a player who is known to take things personally?
Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens speaks during a press conference at the Auerbach Center. Eric Canha-Imagn ImagesIn the immediacy ...
The NBA Draft begins on Tuesday night and the Celtics have two picks: No. 27 and No. 40. Will they use both and then work to figure out the Brown situation later? Or will they look to move Brown on draft night to another interested team? There have been multiple teams reportedly interested in acquiring him over the past few weeks.
We'll have full coverage of the Celtics draft here at CelticsRoundtable. The draft begins at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The Washington Wizards have the No. 1 pick.
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