The Cleveland Cavaliers could have one of the easiest pathways to stealing Giannis Antetokounmpo from the Milwaukee Bucks, but the brutal catch is that they would have to give up Evan Mobley. Bill Simmons and Ryan Russillo discussed the idea on a recent podcast episode.
There are a lot of problems with a straight-up trade, the biggest being that the Bucks would undoubtedly want more in return, but the starting point of Mobley would be one of the best in the league. The question after that would then become, what else do the Cavs have to offer the Bucks in a deal, considering they have used up most of their first-round picks in the past few years?
That’s where Cleveland will have to get creative.
Why do the Cavs have one of the best Giannis packages?
A quick glance around the league reveals that the Cavs are one of the only teams that could throw in a current-day All-Star in a deal. The only other ones that even make a little sense are Alperen Sengun, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Tyler Herro.
Jalen Williams could be an option, but the Oklahoma City Thunder might not want to give him up, and guys like Pascal Siakam and Karl-Anthony Towns could theoretically be available, but they’re both on the older side. Maybe Jaylen Brown could be an option, but the Boston Celtics are in a weird spot.
The point is, Mobley is one of the best (and youngest) players the Bucks could get back in a deal for Antetokounmpo.
The difficulties of a Giannis trade
Heading into the summer, the Cavs will be a second-apron team, meaning they can’t combine salaries in trades, nor can they take back more than they would be sending out. However, since they’ll only be roughly $5.1 million over, they could get under by dumping a contract like Dean Wade’s so they could act as a first-apron team.
At that point, they could also send out De’Andre Hunter—another solid player for the Bucks to utilize—as well as someone like Jalon Tyson, along with draft capital.
But that’s the other difficult part of the equation—the Cavs don’t have a ton of draft picks to trade. They could give up a swap in 2030 and their first in 2031, but the Bucks may want a bigger haul for their star.
Why the trade would be brutal (but also good)
Giving up on Mobley after he just won Defensive Player of the Year would be brutal. He’s clearly on a great path forward, but Antetokounmpo is Antetokounmpo.
The deal would give them a star-studded core to compete in the Eastern Conference and instantly propel them into the mix of title favorites heading into next year.
The biggest question is, would the Cavs find a better deal elsewhere?