A 3-Team Giannis Antetokounmpo Trade Idea That Actually Makes Sense for Bucks and Celtics

The Giannis Antetokounmpo decision is expected soon, as the Milwaukee Bucks sift through offers for their franchise superstar.

The prospect of an extension in Milwaukee seems untenable, with a trade decision before the NBA draft appearing increasingly likely.

B/R has explored and ranked several potential Antetokounmpo trade packages. The Miami Heat appear to be the consensus favorite, though the Boston Celtics are the best destination for the former NBA MVP.

The larger question is the return for Milwaukee, and how one of the Antetokounmpo suitors could pivot into an MVP of a different type: 2024 NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown.

The upstart Atlanta Hawks could partner with the Bucks and Celtics for a wild three-team solution to the Antetokounmpo sweepstakes.

Full Trade Details

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Hawks receive:

• Jaylen Brown (from Celtics)
• Andre Jackson Jr. (from Bucks)
• No. 27 (from Celtics)
• $3 million trade exception (Buddy Hield)

Celtics Receive:

• Giannis Antetokounmpo (from Bucks)

Bucks Receive:

• Jonathan Kuminga (from Hawks)
• Zaccharie Risacher (from Hawks)
• Corey Kispert (from Hawks)
• Buddy Hield (from Hawks)
• Max Shulga (from Celtics)
• No. 8 (from Hawks)
• No. 23 (from Hawks)
• 2027 unprotected first-rounder (from Celtics)
• 2029 unprotected first-rounder (from Hawks)

Why the Atlanta Hawks Do It

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The Hawks gave the New York Knicks a scare with back-to-back first-round wins in Games 2 and 3, before New York responded with a dominant run to the title.

Atlanta has found itself stuck battling through the play-in tournament annually; the No. 6 seed was a significant step forward for the franchise.

With an All-Star in Jalen Johnson, steady contributors in Dyson Daniels, Onyeka Okongwu, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, the Hawks have an intriguing team built around playmaking wings.

Assuming CJ McCollum, who was a playoff problem for the Knicks, returns on a short-term deal in the $20 million range, the franchise will still be looking for a significant offseason addition.

Acquiring Antetokounmpo directly may be Plan A, but under the assumption that the Celtics become the destination, the Hawks can double down with another high-level scoring wing in Brown.

A five-time All-Star, Brown finished the 2025-26 season averaging career highs with 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game.

The cost is the No. 8 pick in the draft, along with moving back four spots from No. 23 to No. 27 via Boston. The group given up includes Risacher and Kuminga, who are both talented, but neither is close to Brown's caliber of production. Kispert and Hield are expendable to the Hawks.

Jackson, also from the Bucks, adds some guard depth. But the Hawks should be able to retain Jock Landale and McCollum, use their non-taxpayer mid-level (projected at $15 million) and bi-annual ($5.5 million), while staying below the NBA's luxury tax threshold. Atlanta can go over the line, but has historically avoided doing so.

The Hawks could use help at guard and center via free agency, the draft at No. 27, or additional trades, but Brown is a bold move that should help the Hawks push for a higher playoff seed, ideally top four, with at least one round of home-court advantage.

The three-team deal would be agreed to before the draft, but executed on July 6 after the NBA's moratorium.

Atlanta triggers a first-apron hard cap at $209.1 million by using the expanded traded-player exception involving Kuminga, Risacher, and Kispert. Hield's guaranteed $3 million generates a standard traded player exception.

Why the Boston Celtics Do It

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It's not complicated. The Celtics upgrade from a top-20 player to a top-five, shifting from Brown to Antetokounmpo.

The three-way concept with Atlanta is an offshoot of an earlier B/R proposal. The outgoing and incoming pieces are identical, except now Brown and No. 27 are going to the Hawks instead of Milwaukee.

Brown has been an integral part of what the Celtics have built since he joined the team as a rookie in 2016. He'll go down in franchise lore for his performance in the 2024 NBA Finals.

But Boston, to an extent, has plateaued, and Antetokounmpo provides a dominant threat at the rim and a defensive presence that elevates the Celtics into something dangerous in the Eastern Conference.

By aggregating Brown with Shulga, the Celtics trigger a second-apron hard cap at a projected $221.7 million, but the team should be able to field a roster just below the luxury-tax threshold. That includes either using the $15 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception or re-signing free agent Nikola Vučević.

Boston pays Brown a $2 million trade bonus, raising his 2026-27 salary to the max at $57.8 million.

Why the Milwaukee Bucks Do It

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Assuming Antetokounmpo has made it abundantly clear that he wants to move on after his contract expires—opting out and leaving the Bucks with nothing in return—the franchise must get the best possible return for him now, with the decision coming before the upcoming NBA draft.

Antetokounmpo has some leverage by threatening to walk as an unrestricted free agent in 2027 if Milwaukee tries to send him to an undesirable location.

The Celtics give him a viable, competitive roster, but in this variation, the Bucks choose to reroute Brown, 30 in October, to the Hawks. Instead, Milwaukee gets younger wings on reasonable contracts like Risacher, the No. 1 pick in 2024, and Kuminga, drafted No. 7 by the Golden State Warriors in 2021. Kispert, No. 15 in 2021, is solid; Hield only has $3 million of his salary guaranteed.

Where the Bucks improve most is getting Nos. 8 and 23 from the Hawks, instead of No. 27 from the Celtics. In addition to the 2027 first from Boston, Milwaukee lands the 2029 first from Atlanta.

The Bucks have significant work to do in a post-Antetokounmpo world, but the path with the Hawks is better than taking on Brown's expensive three-year deal with a team poorly suited to win around him. The team gets a small trade exception for Jackson and a first-apron hard cap for using the Antetokounmpo expanded traded player exception.

The larger question would be the competing offers from teams such as the Miami Heat, Portland Trail Blazers, Cleveland Cavaliers—not the theoretical ones we construct, but the actual menu of choices they can pick from over the next week or so. How does the combined offer from the Celtics and Hawks stack up with the rest?

The answer should be clear by June 23.

Email Eric Pincus at [e-mail] and follow him on X @EricPincus and Bluesky.