It may be time for Warriors fans to learn how to properly pronounce “Antetokounmpo,” because the biggest star on the NBA trade block could be headed to Golden State come Thursday afternoon’s NBA trade deadline.
When the Golden State Warriors’ new second-best player Jimmy Butler tore his ACL and was lost for the season two weeks ago, NBA pundits speculated that the Warriors dynasty was done for. Just days later, rumors swirled that coach Steve Kerr would resign or be fired at the end of the season, and it felt like a forgone conclusion that it was time to start shoveling dirt on the Steph Curry Warriors as we know them.
But mega-bucks Warriors owner Joe Lacob is determined to wring the maximum chance of another championship out of this unit before Steph Curry retires, no matter what the cost. And so Lacob has directed the Warriors team brass to work the phones to make the most blockbuster trade possible. That sets the Warriors sights on the NBA’s biggest star on the trading block, ten-time All-Star and 2021 NBA Finals MVP and champion Giannis Antetokounmpo.
According to an ESPN report from just Monday morning, the Warriors are in the lead for the Giannis sweepstakes.
Brian Windhorst on the Heat, Warriors, and Knicks package for Giannis:
“GSW can make a compelling offer. 4 first plus swaps. Plus the players. Miami can make an offer maybe not quite compelling but they can put together an offer that is you know you could have a meeting about.… https://t.co/K5NyRK0EAc pic.twitter.com/d7M1cqHoiP
— Heat Central (@HeatCulture13) January 28, 2026
Of course, the reason the Warriors are in the lead is because they are willing to trade four (four!) first-round picks. So they are willing to mortgage the future to unite Giannis with Steph Curry, which would create a “Shaq and Kobe”-style combination that could certainly compete for the NBA title.
While we are not privy to these secret trade negotiations, the sense is that the Warriors would offer absolutely anyone on the roster not named Steph Curry in this trade. That could very easily cost the Warriors our beloved fan favorite Draymond Green, plus a few backup players, plus those four first-round picks.
Draymond Green could be on board with a Giannis trade and then return to the Warriors as a free agent this summer, per @BrettSiegelNBA
“One rival executive who has dealt with the Warriors before in trade talks spoke with ClutchPoints on Sunday and brought up the interesting… pic.twitter.com/3hSQ4Q9TBM
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 2, 2026
But what’s this? The Warriors could get Draymond back right after this season is over, if Green were to exercise the $27.6 million option on his contract, a sum that no reasonable team (other than the Warriors) would pay him.
Regardless, the NBA trade deadline is this Thursday, February 5 at 12 pm PT. And this will be a highly interesting week in Warriors-land.
Image: MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – JANUARY 13: Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks and Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors talk after a game at Fiserv Forum on January 13, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
Joe Kukura
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