Feb. 18, 2026, 8:42 p.m. PT<\/p>\n
Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> fans are undoubtedly dreaming of a trade that would land the team Giannis Antetokounmpo this summer. The Milwaukee Bucks superstar is rumored to want out, and the Bucks, who are 23-30 and haven’t been past the first round of the playoffs since 2022, are going nowhere with him.<\/p>\n It is currently unknown how much Antetokounmpo would welcome a trade to the Lakers. He can opt out of his current contract and become a free agent in 2027, so any team that trades for him would need to be a team he actually wants to stay with.<\/p>\n Los Angeles is expected to have roughly $50 million in salary cap space this summer, and it can offer its 2031 and 2033 first-round draft picks, as well as the rights to its 2026 first-rounder, in any potential trade this offseason. That could give it at least a puncher’s chance of landing the two-time MVP.<\/p>\n But L.A. is Luka Doncic’s team now, and anyone who is added to its roster will have to fit with him offensively. Former NBA player Danny Green, who won a championship with the Lakers in 2020, questioned whether Doncic and Antetokounmpo will be able to mesh well together during an appearance<\/a> on ESPN’s “NBA Today.”<\/p>\n “This fit with Giannis and Luka, I don\u2019t know if it works,” Green said. “I was skeptical of even Bron and Luka. \u2026 Giannis needs the ball, he’s more of a transition guy. Luka’s more of a half-court slow-it-down, but he also needs the ball. When I first heard it, I was excited, I was like, ‘Hell yeah, you should do it. Put everything all into Giannis.’ But I’m like, ‘Will it actually work?'”<\/p>\n