Giannis Antetokounmpo Confirms Major Knicks Trade Rumor

Getty

Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks tries to keep the ball from Jalen Brunson #11 of the New York Knicks

The 2025-26 NBA season has been something of a war of attrition, and the New York Knicks have managed to hold up–though that’s a relative term–throughout the year as we sit a week before the start of the playoffs. New York has had a wildly inconsistent season, but if you thought dealing with the vicissitudes of Karl-Anthony Towns was tough, imagine trying to be a Milwaukee Bucks fan as the unending drama of Giannis Antetokounmpo unfolded.

It’s not just that the Bucks sold out a good portion of their future, in draft picks and in salary commitments, to make Antetokounmpo happy and keep the team competitive. It’s also that the team was not great with him on the floor (17-19) and terrible (13-28) with him off it. Additionally, the saga of whether Antetokounmpo would be traded, and whether he would ask for a trade, continued throughout the season, as he very publicly wrestled with his own future.

All of that has been closely watched throughout by the Knicks, because before the season tipped off, there was a rumor reported by ESPN that not only had the Knicks and Bucks discussed an Antetokounmpo trade, but that Antetokounmpo had said the Knicks were the only team to which he’d like to be traded.

Giannis Antetokounmpo Confirmed Knicks Trade Rumors

Throughout the year, one consistent topic was just how true and pertinent that rumor was. On Sunday, a story in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel revealed that Antetokounmpo himself confirmed its veracity.

The gist of the story was about how Antetokounmpo left his family home in Greece because of the uncertainty around the season, and how it had hurt him to be away from them during the adversity of this year.

He explained to the paper’s Lori Nickel his family stayed in Greece: “Because I didn’t know how the season was going to unfold. There were a lot of rumors about me. There was a lot of a uncertainty about me – from both sides.”

Nickel then wrote: “National media outlets reported that the Bucks and the New York Knicks were exploring trade possibilities, and Antetokounmpo confirmed that was the case, although those reports also stated that nothing was in serious stages. It didn’t matter. It was enough to ignite a wildfire of speculation.”

Breakup Is Coming in Milwaukee

Now, again, the Bucks and Antetokounmpo appear to be at odds, and the Knicks are among the teams licking their trade chops.

The Bucks are shutting down Antetokounmpo for the season because of a knee injury, a white-flag acknowledgement that the year has been lost and their best prospects now are to improve draft position and keep Antetokounmpo from suffering a long-term injury that would ruin his offseason trade value.

Antetokounmpo said he is not hurt, though, and wants to play, adding yet another layer to the ongoing feud.

“I’ve never seen a case of a player saying, my caliber of player, that’s like — I’m saying it publicly — I want to (expletive) play. You know what I’m saying?” he said, via The Athletic. “I don’t think I’ve seen this. So, if there needs to be an investigation, great. There should be. I don’t know. There should be. Until we figure something out.”

Indeed, the league is investigating the matter. It all appears to be setting up a summer in which Antetokounmpo will be traded–and the Knicks could well be again at the front of the line.

Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney