Celtics

What would a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade actually entail for the Celtics?

The Celtics would likely have to get creative in any possible trade for the Bucks star.

By Conor Roche

May 31, 2025

6 minutes to read

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In the early weeks of the offseason, most of the rumors surrounding the Celtics have been focused on them selling pieces in order to clear salary for the 2025-26 season.

So, that’s why it came as a bit of a surprise when ESPN’s Brian Windhorst mentioned the Celtics on the shortlist of teams that could potentially land Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo this week. Antetokounmpo hasn’t asked for a trade yet, but he’s been heavily involved in trade rumors since the Bucks were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs for the third straight year in April.

Any potential trade for the two-time MVP would likely be among the biggest in NBA history. Players of Antetokounmpo’s caliber and age rarely become available, so it’d be silly to think Boston wouldn’t be at least interested in such a move.

As rumors continue to swirl around Antetokounmpo, let’s take a look at what a trade for him would entail from the Celtics’ end.

What the Celtics are currently restricted in offering

The Celtics are pretty restricted in how they can acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo because they’re above the second luxury tax apron. NBA rules prohibit them from aggregating salaries in a trade for a player with a larger salary. They also prevent the Celtics from taking in more salary than the salary that they’re giving out in any trade.

Additionally, Jayson Tatum can’t be traded at all until the 2026 offseason due to the extension he signed last July. Of course, Boston would likely want to make a move for Antetokounmpo to eventually pair him with Tatum as he rehabs from his Achilles tear. But if that restriction wasn’t in place, it would’ve made trading Antetokounmpo easier to trade for from a salary standpoint.

Any trade for Antetokounmpo will almost certainly include a first-round pick, with it being likely that multiple first-round picks will be moved to get a deal done. Boston’s 2032 first-round pick is currently frozen because it went over the second luxury tax apron. It can trade its first-round pick in the 2025 draft (No. 28 overall), but it can only trade one other future first-round pick on top of that due to league rules. The Celtics owe their 2029 first-round pick to either the Trail Blazers or Wizards, which they gave up in the trade to land Jrue Holiday in 2023. It should also be noted that the Spurs also hold pick-swap rights to the Celtics’ first-round pick in 2028, top-one protected.

With all of that in mind, there’s only one way for the Celtics to get Antetokounmpo without having to make another trade. Boston would have to give up Jaylen Brown, and likely multiple first-round picks, for Antetokounmpo and one of AJ Green, Chris Livingston, Andre Jackson Jr., or Tyler Smith.

However, such a deal would have to happen before the start of the new league year on June 30 because Antetokounmpo’s salary for the 2025-26 season will be larger than Brown’s. One would have to think that Milwaukee would want another player in addition to Brown in a trade for Antetokounmpo, so it seems like that deal would be unlikely.

How the Celtics can get under the second luxury tax apron

With the Celtics being incredibly restricted in what they can currently offer Antetokounmpo, they’ll have to clear at least $20 million in order to get under the second luxury tax apron to create trade flexibility.

The easiest way to make that happen would likely be to trade Kristaps Porzingis to the Nets. The big man has a $30.7 million salary for next season as he enters the final year of his contract. Brooklyn will likely be the only team in the league to have the amount of cap space to eat that contract without having to give up anything else.

However, teams that shed significant salary in a trade typically have to give up decent draft capital, such as a first-round pick. If the Nets demanded that from the Celtics in order to take on Porzingis’s salary, they’d be a bit more hamstrung in the number of first-round picks they can then use in a possible deal for Antetokounmpo.

So, it’s likely that Boston would have to make multiple moves in order to get under the luxury tax apron. The next easiest way to do that would be to trade at least two of Porzingis, Brown, Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Sam Hauser, or Payton Pritchard while making sure they’re taking back at least $20 million less in salary.

Porzingis and Holiday have been viewed as popular trade candidates for the Celtics to get under the second luxury tax apron in the early stages of the offseason. But if Boston has its eyes on Antetokounmpo, an argument could be made that trading White could be the best option in getting that done. The soon-to-be 31-year-old guard was arguably the third-best player on the team over the last two seasons and is entering the first year of a relatively modest deal for a player of his caliber (four years, $126 million).

Because of that, it stands to reason that the Celtics could get an impressive haul for White. In fact, The Ringer’s Logan Murdock mentioned that possibility when he reported that the Warriors could target White this offseason.

If Boston does get an impressive haul of assets in a theoretical trade for White, it could turn around and use some of that capital for a potential Antetokounmpo deal. Boston might need to find a way to do that, regardless. A pair of other speculated suitors for Antetokounmpo (San Antonio, Houston) have top-10 picks in the 2025 draft and an impressive haul of draft picks in the future.

What history says a player of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s caliber should get in return for a trade

There isn’t much precedent for a player of Antetokounmpo’s caliber and age (30) getting traded. Excluding sign-and-trades, only three multi-time MVP winners have been traded in NBA history. All three of those trades happened before 1990.

Three MVP winners have been traded in the last 10 years. The Rockets gave up All-Star Chris Paul, two first-round picks, and two first-round pick swaps to acquire Russell Westbrook from the Thunder in 2019.

James Harden has been traded three times since he won MVP in 2018. The Nets paid the highest price for Harden in any of the three deals involving him, giving up Jarrett Allen, Caris LeVert, Taurean Prince, Rodions Kurucs, three first-round picks, and four first-round pick swaps as part of a four-team trade in 2021.

The Nets also landed an impressive haul when they decided to trade Kevin Durant in 2023. They received Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, four first-round picks and a future first-round pick swap from the Suns for Durant.

The closest comp to a player of Anteokounmpo’s caliber and age getting traded in recent years might be Luka Doncic. The Lakers didn’t have to give up too much draft capital in order to pry Doncic away from the Mavericks, sending Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and a 2029 first-round pick to get the deal done in February. However, the Mavericks were widely criticized for the deal and it seems unlikely that Antetokounmpo will get moved in a deal that features such little draft capital.

With all of this in mind, here’s what a Celtics offer for Antetokounmpo would likely have to look like

While the Celtics can get under the second luxury tax apron, they also have to keep in mind the possible limitations the Bucks face when making a potential deal involving Antetokounmpo. Milwaukee is above the salary cap, so Boston would have to send salary that nearly equals what Antetokounmpo will make in 2025-26 ($54.1 million).

The easiest way for the Celtics to match salaries in an Antetokounmpo trade would likely be by moving Brown, who is set to make $53.1 million in 2025-26. So, Brown would likely have to be left off the table in any of the deals the Celtics make to get under the second luxury tax apron before making a potential move for Antetokounmpo.

Of course, trading Brown alone likely wouldn’t land the Celtics Antetokounmpo. So, they’d have to give up Brown and more stuff on top after already trading a combination of Porzingis, Holiday, White, Hauser, or Pritchard along with draft capital, although the Celtics would also likely be getting some players back in those other trades.

Obviously, that would be a lot to stomach. Brown is the longest-tenured player in the organization and, like Antetokounmpo, has won a Finals MVP. He’s also a four-time All-Star and has turned into a reliable 20-plus-point-per-game scorer and a strong individual defender.

On the flip side, players of Antetokounmpo’s caliber rarely become available. He’s one of two players in NBA history to win multiple MVP awards and a Defensive Player of the Year award. He was named first-team All-NBA for the seventh straight year in 2024-25, averaging 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game to finish third in the MVP vote.

Beyond the Brown and Antetokounmpo debate, Boston’s quality of depth would take a big hit if traded for the Milwaukee star. That wouldn’t be ideal as Tatum could miss the entire 2025-26 season. But when Tatum returns, a potential duo of him and Antetokounmpo could be one of the best star duos in recent NBA history.