As the Golden State Warriors enter their off-season looking to maximize the final seasons of superstar Stephen Curry's career and make another run at a championship, they are one of many teams rumored to be a possible fit for Giannis Antetokounmpo were he to request a trade from the Milwaukee Bucks.
However, as NBA insider Bobby Marks recently pointed out on ESPN's "Get Up" show, it would be impossible, both financially and value-wise, to complete such a trade without dealing one of Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green, a hurdle that could make such a deal impossible for the Warriors to pull the trigger on.
"How it would happen is you’re likely trading Jimmy Butler [III] or Draymond Green in a trade," Marks said, "That’s how it happens. There’s not a scenario where you can fit Giannis and also keep the other three players there."
While a trade for Antetokounmpo is already an outside possibility, it is a dream that fans of Golden State can cling onto this offseason, and Marks' assessment of the situation could put a damper on these hopes.
Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green could become necessary sacrifices
A trade for Antetokounmpo, 30, would immediately elevate the Warriors to top contender status, combining Antetokounmpo's dominant game on both ends of the floor with Curry's uncanny shot-making ability. Antetokounmpo, moreover, is still in the prime of his career, averaging 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, and 6.5 assists last season on a subpar Bucks team.
However, dealing either Green or Butler, while necessary for a potential Antetokounmpo trade, would be exceedingly difficult.
Golden State, upon acquiring Butler, signed him to a two-year, $110 million contract extension: one that ensured Butler's happiness with his new franchise but made any deal involving him complicated. Moreover, Butler is notorious for manipulating his market, and, in the initial sweepstakes that led to his acquisition by the Warriors, it was rumored that the Bucks were one team he prevented from trading for him.
While these rumors were never confirmed, Butler seems happy in Golden State, and pushing out a player of that caliber would be no easy task.
Further, Green, on top of being on his second to last year of a four-year, $100 million contract (with the final season being a player option), has done so much for the Warriors' organization that it is almost impossible to think of trading him.
While a quick look at the the numbers would have told anyone that having all four of Curry, Green, Butler and Antetokounmpo on the roster would be financially impossible, Marks' reminder of the implications of that quandary serves as a major hurdle to a blockbuster trade for Antetokounmpo.