Could Giannis Antetokounmpo and Luka Doncic Team Up This Summer?
Feb 4, 2026
If Giannis Antetokounmpo gets traded before Thursday’s NBA trade deadline, it will likely be to one of three teams: the Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, or Golden State Warriors. Due to the restrictions on trading draft picks as well as the tax rules of the new CBA, those are the only realistic teams that can make solid offers to the Milwaukee Bucks, and that Giannis may be interested in extending with.
However, if the Bucks decide to keep Giannis and trade him this summer, many more teams will enter the fold as possible Giannis trade destinations.
One team that nobody (except their fans) would be happy about Giannis joining is the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers were gifted Luka Doncic last season and have a long history of landing superstars without necessarily deserving them.
That’s why a recent report from The Stein Line has some fans very nervous.
“But if the Bucks do ultimately decide to take this saga into that spring…
The Lakers, league sources say, would then indeed become a very viable threat to land No. 34. There is little choice for the Lakers, heading into Thursday's deadline, except to stay patient and avoid deals that involve any long-term salary to maintain maximum flexibility for the spring. The hope for the purple-and-gold would then be to use their considerable projected salary cap space to be able to take in a contract like Antetokounmpo's via trade—or another expensive star if one shakes loose post-playoffs—to pair with backcourt cornerstones Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves (who returned to action Tuesday night in Brooklyn after a 19-game injury absence). And dealing with the Lakers in such a scenario would almost certainly spare the Bucks from getting saddled with unwanted contracts.”
If the Lakers were able to pull off a Giannis trade and pair him with Luka, it would be very scary for the rest of the league. Giannis and Luka would be the greatest star duo, probably, since Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant paired up in Golden State.
The Lakers certainly don’t seem to have the best available package to offer for Giannis, but if Giannis wants to force his way there this summer, they really could create the most formidable dynamic duo in the league.
