NBA Insiders Reportedly Focused on Giannis' Future over LeBron amid Trade Rumors
NBA personnel attending Summer League action in Las Vegas are reportedly more interested in the future of Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo than Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, per NBA insiders Marc Stein and Jake Fischer for the Stein Line newsletter.
"The foremost curiosity among Summer League attendees, based on our observations, is not LeBron James' future with the Lakers," Stein and Fischer wrote. "Remember: Any theoretical trade you want to propose involving the NBA's all-time leading scorer requires James' consent — thanks to the no-trade clause he holds — as well as the extremely complicated salary cap math that would be involved to match the 40-year-old's $52.6 million salary for next season.
"The far greater discourse generator, not surprisingly, involves Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo, who appeared in the video below earlier this week with the noted YouTube streamer IShowSpeed and stopped short of pledging his future to the Bucks.
"That handful of awkward seconds before the 'I love Milwaukee part' account for all the hesitation that the rest of the league needed to resume the rampant questioning about Antetokounmpo's level of satisfaction with the Bucks' offseason business, starting with their signing of Myles Turner away from the Pacers that was made possible when Milwaukee stunningly waived-and-stretched Damian Lillard's contract."
Beyond the "handful of awkward seconds" that may or may not prove to be meaningful, the other aspect here is the fact that Antetokounmpo is 10 years younger and a reigning seven-time All-NBA First Teamer who just finished third in the NBA MVP race. Naturally, if there's any inkling of a potential move with a superstar of his ilk who could dominate the NBA for a number of years more, then ears are going to perk up.
Both Giannis and LeBron have been the subject of trade speculation and rumors this offseason. Nothing has materialized yet, and there haven't been any indications that either player is itching to make a sweeping change. Rather, the focus has been on potentially cryptic messages and the fodder that comes with them.
At the moment, it appears any potential movement this summer is more speculation than anything else as the dog days of the offseason quickly approach.
