Celtics gain momentum in Giannis sweepstakes after latest bittersweet bombshell

This past weekend was quiet for the most part. It wasn’t until almost 4 a.m. on Monday that we got our first substantial Giannis Antetokounmpo update involving the Boston Celtics’ place in the trade sweepstakes.

NBA Insider Marc Stein’s latest report gives the sense that there could be some real momentum towards getting a deal done.

“One league source, after my story published, told TheSteinLine that the Celtics emerged from the weekend ‘with a real shot’ to win this race with a Jaylen Brown-centric offer,” Stein wrote in a post to X/Twitter. ”Adding that Milwaukee has considered going ahead even without a third-team facilitator.”

What an exciting tidbit to wake up to on a Monday morning, right?

With the lack of Celtics-related updates this weekend, it was truly beginning to feel as if Boston was falling out of the race -- especially since it was believed that there’d be something on this before the end of Sunday.

Jaylen Brown now seems to be in the Celtics' offer for Giannis

It seems that the Celtics have begun to take these negotiations seriously… which could be a bit bittersweet.

The Giannis saga was more fun when it felt like the Cs were just going to be able to pull off a one-for-one swap, sending Jaylen Brown to Milwaukee in exchange for Antetokounmpo. Both players make nearly identical salaries, so Boston would still have all of the same financial tools (mid-level exception, bi-annual exception) at their disposal, without mortgaging their future by including tons of draft picks.

It's worth mentioning that Stein's report was the first from a national insider to indicate that Brown was actually being made available. ESPN's Brian Windhorst echoed the report on Monday morning's Get Up.

Antetokounmpo’s known desire to play in either Boston or Miami effectively blocked other teams from raising the ante because of their fear he wouldn’t sign an extension anywhere but those places. Not to mention that Milwaukee publicly labeled the NBA Draft as the deadline for a potential blockbuster.

Long story short, the Bucks had no leverage, and they still have less leverage than a team would normally have when trading a player of Giannis’s caliber.

With Miami and Boston seemingly now in a bidding war, it’s feeling more realistic that they’ll get a decent haul back in exchange for their franchise player.

Said haul may hurt the Celtics more than they’d like if the Bucks get everything they’re hoping for.

The asking price for Giannis could hurt the Celtics

The big update from Stein came after he published an updated newsletter around 1 a.m. Inside, there was the first hint of what it’d actually take on Boston’s end to get a deal done. Apparently, on top of draft compensations, Milwaukee is looking to pry Hugo Gonzalez away from the Cs.

“A complete picture there has been harder to pinpoint, but 2024 NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown is the widely presumed centerpiece by this point along with Boston's No. 27 pick in Tuesday's draft,” Stein wrote. “The Celtics, like Miami, would naturally be asked to add players and future draft compensation to the ultimate trade construction. Sources say that the Bucks have interest in Boston's prized young Spanish guard Hugo Gonzalez.”

Including Gonzalez in a trade wouldn’t be ideal. Boston would lose a young player who showed clear potential in his rookie season. With how difficult it can be to add talent to a roster with two supermax players (Antetokounmpo and Jayson Tatum, hypothetically), holding onto Hugo feels important.

There’s reason to believe that he’ll be able to be a contributor on a contending team, to say the least.

If Boston can acquire Giannis and retain Gonzalez, then fans should be celebrating like they’re part of the Tartan Army.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow