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Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks and Jaden McDaniels of the Minnesota Timberwolves fall to the floor in the fourth quarter at Target Center.
The Minnesota Timberwolves’ pursuit of Giannis Antetokounmpo is over — at least for now.
ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported Wednesday that the Milwaukee Bucks have informed interested teams they intend to keep their franchise star through the trade deadline.
“The Milwaukee Bucks have indicated to teams that they are keeping Giannis Antetokounmpo through the trade deadline and will start making other trades,” Charania wrote.
Shortly after, Milwaukee underscored that position by shifting focus to smaller moves, dealing Cole Anthony and Amir Coffey to Phoenix for Nick Richards and Nigel Hayes-Davis, Charania reported.
“Over the last week, the Bucks have been focused on incoming calls for Giannis Antetokounmpo and canvassing the NBA for small salary trades,” Charania added. “Milwaukee remains in talks to complete potentially more of the latter here on deadline day.”
Bucks Never Fully Committed to Giannis Talks
Behind the scenes, skepticism about Milwaukee’s seriousness lingered across the league.
NBA insider Jake Fischer relayed blunt feedback from one executive involved in discussions.
“They were never serious,” the executive said of the Bucks’ Giannis trade posture.
While Fischer did not specify which team the executive represented, Minnesota was among several franchises — along with Miami, New York and Golden State — that engaged Milwaukee at various points.
ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel echoed that sentiment, noting the Bucks had signaled internally that they preferred to revisit the situation in the offseason.
“The Bucks had signaled to teams over the last 48 hours their intentions to keep Giannis and figure things out this summer,” Siegel wrote. “For days, the Warriors, Timberwolves, and Heat had been pushing hard for a Giannis trade… but the Bucks made their intentions very clear at the start of the week.”
Timberwolves’ All-In Push Falls Short
Minnesota’s front office had positioned itself aggressively in anticipation of a potential opening.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Timberwolves made multiple core veterans available — including Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert — after shedding Mike Conley Jr.’s salary to slip below the first luxury-tax apron.
That maneuver restored Minnesota’s ability to aggregate contracts and take back more salary — a necessary mechanism for a Giannis-level trade. What the Timberwolves could not generate, however, was the additional draft capital required to meaningfully improve their offer.
Minnesota Makes Secondary Move, Signals End of Giannis Chase
GettyGiannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks is defended by Ayo Dosunmu, who is now traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Instead, Minnesota pivoted to a smaller, deadline-day transaction that effectively closed the book on its Giannis pursuit.
Charania reported that the Timberwolves sent Rob Dillingham, Leonard Miller, and four second-round picks to the Chicago Bulls in exchange for Ayo Dosunmu and Julian Phillips.
The deal marked a swift end to Minnesota’s brief investment in Dillingham. On draft night in 2024, the Timberwolves surrendered an unprotected 2031 first-round pick and a 2030 pick swap to select him eighth overall. Less than a year later, they attached four additional second-rounders to move on, signaling a clear shift away from a long-term development timeline.
Ayo Dosunmu Adds Win-Now Depth, Flexibility
Dosunmu arrives as a plug-and-play rotation guard on an expiring $7.5 million contract. The 6-foot-4 guard is averaging 15.0 points while shooting 45.1 percent from three, along with 3.6 assists and 3.0 rebounds.
ESPN salary cap analyst Bobby Marks noted the added contractual upside.
“Pre-free agency strikes again with Minnesota acquiring soon-to-be free agent Ayo Dosunmu,” Marks wrote on X. “Without the trade, it would have been highly unlikely that Minnesota could have signed him as a free agent. Minnesota now inherits his Bird rights, allowing them to exceed the cap in a new deal.”
Dosunmu now joins Naz Reid and Bones Hyland on a bench that projects as a solid eight-man postseason rotation — even as the Giannis door closes until at least the summer.
Alder Almo is a sports journalist covering the NBA for Heavy.com. He has more than 20 years of experience in local and international media, including broadcast, print and digital. He previously covered the Knicks for Empire Sports Media and the NBA for Off the Glass. Alder is from the Philippines and is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey. More about Alder Almo
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