There's going to be a price to pay for the Golden State Warriors if they want to land Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, and that's likely to extend beyond simply relinquishing all their future draft capital.
Any potential Antetokounmpo trade to the Warriors is also likely to include Kyle Kuzma -- a player who arguably has negative trade value given his lack of impact at the Bucks since arriving from the Washington Wizards.
Bucks may dump Kyle Kuzma on Warriors in Giannis trade
In an ideal world, the Bucks would have used Kuzma and his $22.4 million salary for an upgrade to build around Antetokounmpo before the deadline. However, with a lack of draft capital to attach, doing so would have been difficult and has helped ultimately lead to Wednesday's trade request.
With Kuzma holding a $20.4 million contract for next season, this is the perfect opportunity for the Bucks to shed the deal while also trying to get back maximum value for Antetokounmpo in a trade.
Golden State also have the exact path to facilitating such a move. Not only is Jimmy Butler's contract a perfect match for Antetokounmpo, but so too is Jonathan Kuminga's for Kuzma. Sure, the young Warrior forward isn't generating much interest himself right now, but the sheer fact that he can be an expiring contract makes him more valuable than Kuzma -- let alone the fact there's still a higher upside.
The real question is that if Kuzma also makes his way to Golden State, can they turn him into the kind of valuable rotation player that he simply hasn't been in Milwaukee. This is someone who did have back-to-back 20-point seasons in recent years, albeit with the lowly Washington Wizards.
Kuzma's best season came with the Wizards in 2023-24, averaging 22.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists while shooting 46.3% from the floor. While those numbers may be fake to some degree, surely there's still enough talent there for the 30-year-old to be a rotation contributor off the bench Kuzma is averaging 12.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists with the Bucks this season, shooting 49.3% from the floor but only 32% from 3-point range.
It would be a dream if the Warriors could trade Butler and all their picks for Antetokounmpo, then move Kuminga for a better, more consistent rotation player than Kuzma. That feels like an even tougher task than what trading for Antetokounmpo already is, with Kuzma likely to be part of the tax that Golden State will need to pay to acquire the 2x MVP.