From Lone-Star to the Lone Star State – By Colin Davern, Contributor
Giannis Antetokounmpo is the next big NBA free agency decision. His decision to stay in Milwaukee or sign with a new team will rock the NBA to its core.
If I were Giannis, I’ve got my feet out the door if the Bucks don’t go all-in on this upcoming season to win it all. The Bucks have mostly conducted business with the assumption that he will sign a supermax extension. It showed when they traded Malcolm Brogdon to the Pacers in 2019 and didn’t make much of an effort to pair Giannis up with another superstar. They’re building the roster for the next five years instead of going for it all before the summer of 2021, which could backfire tremendously if Giannis ends up leaving. They might be stuck asking themselves why they didn’t go all-in with him when they had the chance.
Should Giannis decide his talent will be put to use in a better way with another team, what team will that be?
I think the ideal destination for him would be the Dallas Mavericks. Dallas already has one of the brightest futures of any NBA team, and further cementing themselves as the NBA’s Euroleague superteam would have their championship potential soar through the roof.
Luca Doncic is already on the cusp of being a megastar, and Kristaps Porzingis acts as a great sidekick to him. Pairing them up with a two-time MVP would make the team a championship favorite along with the Lakers and a healthy Warriors team.
Giannis landing in Dallas would make the Mavs a potential dynasty, and it wouldn’t give him the reputation of being a spineless snake – much like Kevin Durant had when he went to a Golden State team that was already among the game’s elite.
Antetokounmpo trading lone-star status in Milwaukee for a spot deep to the heart of Texas would produce incredible results for both sides.
Stay put in Milwaukee – By Matthew Lucas, Contributor
In 2014, rookie sensation Giannis Antetokounmpo tweeted, “I’ll never leave the team and the city of Milwaukee till we build the team to a championship level team…”
Six years later, and after the Milwaukee Bucks were embarrassed by the Miami Heat during the Eastern Conference Semifinals, many questioned whether or not Milwaukee was the right place for the two-time league MVP.
Although the Bucks have finished first in the Eastern Conference the last two years, they have failed to make it to the NBA Finals in either season.
With nearly every NBA team frothing at a possible Antetokounmpo free agency in 2021, Milwaukee’s co-owner Marc Larsy expressed his intent to surround Giannis with “championship-caliber pieces.” This commitment by Larsy and the Bucks should push Giannis in the right direction of staying with Milwaukee.
Giannis and fellow standout Kris Middleton have been a great one-two punch for the Bucks, but a third and reliable option would greatly improve each star’s game, and put the Bucks over the edge. With an interesting free agent market this upcoming season, the move that Milwaukee should make to convince Giannis to stay would be to make a trade or a big signing for that third piece in the puzzle.
Milwaukee has been the Eastern Conference’s top seed each of the last two years, proving that they can control the East, so a move for Giannis to head to the much more competitive West would put an even greater challenge in front of him.
Teaming up with the Mavericks would put a dangerous lineup of Giannis, Kristaps Porzingis and Luka Doncic on the court, but they would only be one of many star-studded teams within that conference. Joining the Mavericks would most likely give him an even harder path to the Finals than before.
For Giannis to pack up his belongings and play somewhere else would be quite a gamble. Milwaukee knows that Giannis is an excellent player who is vital to their success, and if Giannis plays his cards right, they will do everything to make sure he doesn’t slip through.
