The Warriors made a couple of trades Wednesday night, but neither was for the NBA deadline’s main prize: Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Golden State sent forward Jonathan Kuminga and guard Buddy Hield to the Atlanta Hawks for veteran big man Kristaps Porzingis, and dealt center Trayce Jackson-Davis to the Toronto Raptors for a 2026 second-round draft pick. A source confirmed both trades to NBC Sports Bay Area’s Monte Poole, and the news first was reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania.
In a piece published on the Kuminga-Hield-Porzingis trade, ESPN’s Anthony Slater and Charania shed some light on where Golden State’s Antetokounmpo pursuit stands after many reports pointed to the Warriors as one of several possible suitors for the two-time NBA MVP.
“This is the unofficial end of the Warriors’ pursuit for Giannis Antetokounmpo, team sources said,” Slater and Charania wrote. “They made several offers over the past week, but came away with the impression over the past 24 hours that the Milwaukee Bucks won’t be moving Antetokounmpo at the deadline and pivoted to other plans, sources said.”
Based on ESPN’s report, it sounds like Golden State didn’t quite lose the Antetokounmpo bidding war — Milwaukee simply appears like it didn’t see a deal for the superstar it liked. The market for Antetokounmpo likely will be much richer over the summer, so it makes sense for the Bucks to hold onto him for now.
Along with Kuminga, the Warriors reportedly also included Draymond Green, Brandin Podziemski and a bevy of first-round draft picks in its pitch for Antetokounmpo.
Instead, it looks like the Warriors knew that offer was a dead end and decided to pivot Kuminga and other assets into different deals with the deadline just over 12 hours away.
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