NBA Trade Rumors: GM wary of Spurs landing Giannis Antetokounmpo alongside Victor Wembanyama leveraging No. 2 pick in the draft

Giannis Antetokounmpo's future with the Milwaukee Bucks is uncertain. The San Antonio Spurs' landing the No. 2 pick has added fuel to trade speculation, as the Spurs might be willing to pair Antetokounmpo with Victor Wembanyama.

According to The Athletic's Sam Vecenie on Friday, an unnamed Eastern Conference executive said the Spurs would be the favorite to win the title next year if they paired Antetokounmpo and Wembanyama.

“If the Spurs paired Giannis and Wemby, they would be the favorite to win the title next year,” the executive said. “They’d have two guys who might be top-five players in the league next year on the same team. Plus, they fit.

"They’d have a dominant defense that no one would be able to score against inside, and they’d have the ability to play five-out in an even more devastating way than the Bucks did with Brook Lopez if they surrounded Giannis and Wemby with the right wings.”

The duo's defensive dominance and ability to play five-out would make them a formidable opponent. However, if the Bucks decide to trade Antetokounmpo, they might leverage the Spurs' interest to drive a bidding war with other teams, such as the Houston Rockets, who are also rumored to have interest in the two-time NBA MVP.

In exchange, the Bucks could demand significant assets, including draft picks and young players, to jumpstart a rebuild.

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Analysts link Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Warriors anew

The Golden State Warriors are once again linked to Giannis Antetokounmpo. The one-time NBA champion has been rumored to Steph Curry's team in past seasons.

On Friday's "Get Up," Brian Windhorst agreed with Jay Williams' comments that "there is a world where Giannis says he wants to be in Golden State." While Windhorst recognizes that a potential trade pathway exists, he said significant hurdles remain.

"Yes, there is a package that the Warriors could use," Windhorst said. "They have some future draft picks. They have interesting young players. Like last year, Brandon Podziemski was off limits. Who knows if that's going to be the case this year? But they can't win a bidding war."

The Warriors have four tradeable future first-round picks, including 2026, 2028, 2030 and 2032, as well as potential pick swaps in the next seven years. Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy will be among the executives who will likely engage in discussions about Giannis Antetokounmpo in the coming months.