Immediately After Giannis Declared He'd Never Demand A Trade Out Of Milwaukee, Shams Was On ESPN Suggesting How He Might Demand A Trade If The Bucks Don't Win

Stacy Revere. Getty Images.

Thankfully, we've made it through the All Star Break and actual NBA basketball games are back in our lives again. Things picked back up with a hilarious Hornets win on the road against the Lakers in a game that historically the Hornets had no business actually winning

But watching the Lakers fail isn't why I'm happy the games are back. It doesn't hurt, but it's not the point of this blog. I think we can all agree that during the stoppage when everyone is looking for "basketball content", the discussions and reports and all that bullshit get old real quick. All Star Game debates, the face of the NBA debates, random trade speculation, it was a brutal week to get through as we all did our best to wait for the games to return.

If you needed any additional examples of why we desperately need actual basketball back, all you have to do is look at what happened with Giannis. Just yesterday, Giannis touched on the subject of if he would ever demand a trade. Not a new question for him, but given what took place this month, a topic that isn't out of line to ask him about. His response?

Pretty much what the response has always been whenever this subject comes up with Giannis. He knows when to put pressure on the front office to make moves and add talent by leveraging his potential free agency, they cave and add talent, he signs the extension, and around and around we go. 

So what happens the very next day? Shams is on ESPN the next morning talking about how there's a world where Giannis could ask for a trade if the Bucks don't have a sustained level of winning

Listen, I am by no means a Bucks fan. Farrrrrr from it. But I mean come on. How long has ESPN been trying to get Giannis out of Milwaukee? It feels like we do this dance literally every year. It doesn't matter what he says, it doesn't matter that he continues to sign his extensions, it doesn't matter that he's never put in that trade demand, it doesn't even matter that THE DAY BEFORE he turned down the idea of ever asking for a trade. This is the ESPN formula. Shams goes on TV and theorizes like that, it goes viral, blogs like this get written etc. On one hand, I'm playing into ESPNs game, but on the other hand,d someone has to call this out for what it is and while I don't particularly care for Bucks fans, that doesn't mean this isn't bullshit. 

It feels a little weird to be talking about Giannis' thoughts on success and his future and then not even mentioning what he JUST said about the topic. Instead, it's the opposite. So it begs the question, who is lying? Is Giannis full of shit denying that he would ever ask out (remember, his current teammate was adamant about doing the same thing once upon a time), or is Shams full of shit floating around trade speculation? Both can't be telling the truth!

Or can they be?

I think right now, at this moment, I can understand why Giannis wouldn't be demanding a trade. The Bucks are still alive for a top 4 seed, and if healthy who knows what their playoff run might look like. If you are someone who thinks MIL can make a deep run, that means you'd have them advancing past the Cavs in the 2nd round which is certainly possible, but definitely not a given. If they drop from 5th to 6th, that team changes from CLE to BOS, and that's not all that great for them either. 

But if that team loses early again? In the 1st or 2nd round for the 4th straight season? Looking at the Bucks roster it's only getting older. If Kyle Kuzma underperforms, trading a franchise legend and Giannis' running mate Khris Middleton might push him over the edge. I don't think it's crazy to think that he may get a little antsy as he now enters his 30s. 

I just think it's pretty fucked to be pushing that narrative now, in February. Immediately after he just said he'd never demand a trade. Why there is this obsession with ESPN to push these all time players out of "small markets" is something I'll never understand. People are going to watch Giannis regardless of where he plays. He's Giannis! I get ESPN probably still has a hard on over the fact that Luka is now a Laker, but that doesn't mean every single NBA superstar has to join a big market legacy team. 

Given what we just saw with Luka, I guess we can never truly know what the hell is going to happen. Never in a million years did any of us think something like that was possible, so while logic makes you want to believe Giannis as a Bucks fan, it is true that in the NBA things can change in an instant. At the same time, I don't think the Bucks have any problem continuing to pay Giannis whatever the hell the market says he's worth unlike the Mavs and Luka, and as a reminder, his 3/175M extension hasn't even kicked in yet. Dame is also signed through at least 2026-27 as well, so this all feels WAY too premature in my opinion.