Given their strong push for a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade prior to February's deadline, it won't be at all surprising if the Golden State Warriors renew interest in the 2x MVP when a deal becomes possible again in the summer.
Unfortunately for the Warriors, their ability to pull off a blockbuster Antetokounmpo trade rests largely on luck at this year's lottery, assuming they don't win two-straight road Play-In games to secure a playoff spot.
Warriors hopes of Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rests on lottery luck
An eventual Antetokounnmpo trade looks likely this offseason, especially following another major report from ESPN's Shams Charania earlier in the week. Within that report, Charania basically outlined that it was the Miami Heat who were closest to securing a deal with the Milwaukee Bucks for the superstar forward.
With the Heat and other teams possessing the ability to trade more picks in the offseason, it seems highly unlikely that the Warriors -- without a blue-chip young prospect -- will have the assets to get a deal done.
However, that could suddenly change if luck is on their side at the lottery where they're set to have a 9.4% chance of landing a top four pick if they don't forge through to the playoffs. With this year's draft holding a top tier of arguably four players, having a top selection could strongly incentivize the Bucks in a way Golden State weren't able to do ahead of February's deadline.
Dalton Sell of Behind the Buck Pass outlined the potential scenario, suggesting the Bucks will only be interested in a deal with the Warriors if they can strike gold at the lottery.
"There are plenty of "ifs" in this scenario. Giannis has to go through with asking out. The Warriors must land a top pick. Nothing is set in stone at this point. Yet, if Golden State wants to make their Giannis dreams finally come true, they better hope they have some luck on their side," Sell wrote.
Giannis Antetokounmpo will have strong say on trade destination
The other aspect that might be slightly more in Golden State's control is where Antetokounmpo actually sees his future. The Warriors, nor any other team around the league, are going to give up significant assets without an assurance that the 31-year-old will sign a long-term contract extension.
With only one guaranteed year left on his current contract, Antetokounmpo will have a far greater say on where he ends up than what he did when trade discussions took place before the mid-season deadline.
A top four pick in the draft, and Antetokounmpo being willing to sign long-term, could be enough for the Warriors to fulfill something they've been keeping an eye on for the entirety of this decade.