The Boston Celtics rumors centering around Giannis Antetokounmpo have heated up quite a bit since their playoff elimination. There's been one scenario where it would make a lot of sense: a three-way deal that would send Giannis to Boston, Jaylen Brown to Atlanta, and a bunch of picks to Milwaukee. However, that would be contingent on how the NBA Draft Lottery turns out.
For full context, both the Hawks and Bucks will be in the lottery. The Bucks have the 10th-best odds at the No. 1 pick (3%) while the Hawks have the seventh-best odds (6.8%). As it turns out, how they turn out in the lottery are directly linked to one another.
The Hawks are in the lottery in the first place because of the trade they made with the New Orleans Pelicans last year that sent Derik Queen to the Big Easy. However, because of the pick swap the Bucks owe the Pelicans because of old friend Jrue Holiday, if the Bucks finish higher than the Hawks in the lottery, that pick gets swapped with Atlanta.
If Hawks win the lottery, they won't want to deal
The prospect of adding a No. 1 pick (or really just a really high one) from a loaded draft class may make it too enticing to trade it for someone like Brown or Antetokounmpo. That way, they can afford to keep their assets and still be a team on the rise in the East.
This draft boasts some serious talent, even if it doesn't have a sure thing as last year's did. In circumstances like those, a team like the Hawks shouldn't have any interest in trading a potential franchise talent they could add to a playoff team while being paid on a team-friendly rookie deal.
However, if the Hawks get the No. 7 pick (or lower), then the Celtics could be business for a Giannis trade. Their odds aren't great of going that high, but if they do, it would basically cancel out any chance of a trade.
If Bucks get a high pick, they may dangle that to get Giannis help
The Bucks owe the Hawks a pick swap, which is why it's in their best interest to move up, but not as high as the Hawks. The odds of that happening are even lower than the Hawks scenario mentioned above, but it is a possibility.
If the Bucks get a high enough pick (that they wouldn't have to fork over to the Hawks), then they would have all the incentive to dangle it for some help to pair up with Antetokounmpo. The bottom line is that teams don't trade anomalies like him if they don't have to. Trading a lottery pick for a proven would bail the Bucks out of their jam.
When you look at the odds, it's pretty hilarious to think that any of this is a possibility. However, after Dallas won the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes last year, anything that has a nonzero chance of happening shouldn't be discounted.
12 years ago, Boston was very much in the Kevin Love business. The plan was either get a high lottery pick and if that didn't work, they would dangle it to Minnesota for Love to put him next to Rajon Rondo and Jeff Green (LOL). Fruitless plan, no?
Well, Cleveland won that lottery. After they got LeBron James back, they suddenly had a much better offer than Boston did, and the rest was history. Granted, it worked out in the end, but the Celtics have seen fate intervene with their plans in the past.
The odds are in Boston's favor that the Bucks will finish with the No. 10 pick and the Hawks will finish with the No. 7 pick, which would definitely pave the way for a Giannis blockbuster trade, but the only way we'll know for sure is when the lottery takes place this coming Sunday!
Stay tuned!
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