How the Miami Heat Could Land Giannis Antetokounmpo
The Milwaukee Bucks face a ticking clock with their franchise player. Giannis Antetokounmpo will either accept or reject an extension this offseason. If it's the latter, the team needs a trade before he leaves in free agency after the 2026-27 season.
The timing is tricky. Antetokounmpo won't be eligible to extend until October 1. The Bucks' best window of opportunity for a deal is ahead of the NBA draft in June, leading into the July free-agent period, when teams are at their most financially flexible.
Whatever Antetokounmpo intends to do in October must be communicated clearly over the next two months.
There's a growing belief around the league that the 31-year-old may be ready to move on, with the Miami Heat often mentioned as a potential landing spot. They won't be the only team in the mix, but Antetokounmpo will still have significant influence over where he ends up, able to cool interest from other suitors by signaling he's unlikely to re‑sign there.
So what would a Miami package look like for Antetokounmpo? The answer comes in two realistic flavors, depending on who possesses the greater leverage.
Full Trade Scenario (Favoring Miami)
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The Miami Heat receive: Giannis Antetokounmpo, $4.7 million trade exception
The Milwaukee Bucks receive: Tyler Herro, Kel'el Ware, Nikola Jović, 2026 first-rounder, 2030 first-rounder, 2032 protected first-rounder, 2033 second-rounder, $4.6 million trade exception
Full Trade Scenario (Favoring Milwaukee)
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The Miami Heat receive: Giannis Antetokounmpo
The Milwaukee Bucks receive: Tyler Herro, Kel'el Ware, Kasparas Jakučionis, Dru Smith, Jahmir Young, Myron Gardner, 2026 first-rounder, 2030 first-rounder, 2032 protected first-rounder, 2033 second-rounder, $9.8 million trade exception (Antetokounmpo)
Important Trade Notes
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The trade would be agreed to by the Heat and Bucks before the first night of the NBA draft on June 23, assuming Miami doesn't win a top-4 selection on the May 10 draft lottery. The Bucks inform Miami who to take at No. 13; a top-4 selection for the Heat changes the calculus entirely.
The deal is executed on July 6, after the 2026-27 moratorium, under a projected $165 million salary cap, $200.5 million luxury tax, and $209.1 million first apron. Miami's 2032 first-round pick has top-4 protection, otherwise it conveys unprotected to Milwaukee in 2033.
In both cases, the Heat trigger a first-apron hard cap by using the expanded traded-player exception. In the first deal, aggregating Herro and Jović to acquire Antetokounmpo with Ware's full $4.7 million salary creates a new standard traded player exception, available to the Heat for a full year. The second scenario aggregates the six outgoing players without the Ware trade exception.
Milwaukee generates a $4.6 million trade exception after taking in Herro, Ware and Jović for Antetokounmpo. That grows to $9.8 million in the alternate option.
Why the Miami Heat Do It
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It's not complicated. The Heat, a play-in regular, add one of the NBA's best players.
Miami had success with Jimmy Butler, who was 30 when he played his first game with the Heat, taking the franchise to two NBA Finals. Antetokounmpo, 32 in December, is the superior player, and Miami's coaching and training staff has a positive reputation around the league.
Whatever Antetokounmpo has to offer in his later years, the Heat will get the most out of it.
The buzz in NBA circles is that Antetokounmpo wants to play alongside Bam Adebayo, who shares a common agent in Alex Saratsis of Octagon Sports. If Antetokounmpo is willing to be aggressive to force his way to the Heat, discouraging other suitors with the threat that he'll opt out of his final year ($62.8 million in 2027-28) to leave in a year as an unrestricted free agent, Miami could have significant leverage.
Even so, a Miami deal for Antetokounmpo would undoubtedly require parting with a former All-Star in Herro and Ware, who was one of the best picks in the 2024 draft (No. 15), plus multiple first-round picks. Herro and Ware's outgoing salaries aren't enough to make a legal trade without additional player(s). Miami's better path includes Jović, who signed a $62.4 million extension before the start of the 2025-26 season.
The alternate scenario keeps Jović with the Heat, sacrificing significant depth while also sending out recent first-rounder Jakučionis (No. 20 pick in 2025). This path makes fleshing out the rest of the roster more difficult for Miami while also bringing it closer to first-apron constraints due to Jović's salary.
Best-case scenario for Miami: the team fields a starting lineup of a re-signed Norman Powell, Andrew Wiggins, Davion Mitchell, Adebayo, and Antetokounmpo. The bench would include Jaime Jaquez Jr., Pelle Larsson, possibly re-signed Simone Fontecchio, Jakučionis, Young, Smith, Gardner, and whatever else the team can add via free agency.
Finally, Wiggins isn't a realistic trade piece in an Antetokounmpo deal, unless he specifically chooses to opt into his final year at $30.2 million to go to the Bucks. Instead, he's more likely to opt out and seek a new multiyear deal.
A compromise for the Heat would be $81 million over three years, starting at $25 million. Or Wiggins could seek a new home on a similar contract, perhaps with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Why the Milwaukee Bucks Do It
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The Bucks' top priority would be convincing Antetokounmpo of the future vision in Milwaukee under new head coach Taylor Jenkins (h/t ESPN's Shams Charania). Under the assumption that Antetokounmpo makes clear his intentions to move on, the Bucks canvas the league for the best possible offers.
The Heat represent the baseline return for Milwaukee, believed to be Antetokounmpo's desired destination. Can the team get better than Herro, Ware, and three first-round picks elsewhere? Will Antetokounmpo scuttle any attempts to send him elsewhere?
Herro, 26, is a Wisconsin native. He earned All-Star honors in 2024-25, averaging a career-best 23.9 points and 5.5 assists per game. He suffered some this past season with fractured ribs, but still contributed 20.5 points and 4.1 assists in Miami, shooting slightly below his career average of 38.2 percent from three.
As part of the deal, the Bucks would need to negotiate an extension with Herro that can start immediately at $39.6 million/$124.7 million over three years. He'd be eligible for $46.2 million/$207 million over four seasons after a six-month waiting period after the trade from Miami.
Seven-footer Ware, 22, averaged 11.1 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game through the regular season. Despite the Heat's loss to the Charlotte Hornets in the play-in, Ware was a standout with 12 points, 19 rebounds, five blocks and four assists. He's developed into a three-point threat, shooting 39.5 percent on 3.0 attempts per game.
Depending on the direction after Antetokounmpo, the Bucks can pair Myles Turner and Ware in a giant frontcourt or look to trade Turner to bolster depth at other positions.
Jović, 22, didn't have a strong 2025-26. His minutes dipped to 17.2 from 25.1 the prior year, and his production flagged from 10.7 points on 37.1 percent shooting from three to 7.3 and 26.9. He'd be a leap of faith for the Bucks, though his multi-year contract will be below the non-taxpayer mid-level exception in future years.
If Jović is the sticking point and if Milwaukee has the leverage, the team would try to negotiate to acquire Jakučionis instead. The 6'5" guard can play either backcourt position. He showed promise through 53 games, averaging 6.2 points on 42.3 percent shooting from three.
The Jakučionis path also includes Smith, Young, and Gardner, though the Bucks have roster space concerns. Five players have team options (Kevin Porter Jr., Gary Trent Jr., Gary Harris, Taurean Prince, and Jericho Sims). Milwaukee will also decide on Pete Nance and Andre Jackson Jr.'s team-controlled contracts. The Bucks would also have two first-round picks in June, including Miami's selection.
The roster would need a serious overhaul after losing a franchise player like Antetokounmpo. The initial pieces may not hit together perfectly, but the front office would have the freedom to reshape its identity with Herro and Ware as foundational pieces.
Does Miami's offer do enough for the Bucks? It's a better path than letting Antetokounmpo leave as a free agent in 2027. How many actionable competing bids will compare favorably?
Milwaukee has a couple of months to find out, after which flexibility around the draft, salary cap, roster limitations, and leverage in parting ways with its superstar diminish significantly.
Email Eric Pincus at eric.pincus@gmail.com and follow him on X @EricPincus and Bluesky.
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