NBA Insider Sets Record Straight on Giannis Trade Saga

There were so many rumors going around regarding Giannis Antetokounmpo this trade deadline. It was hard to tell what was true and what was made up by media pundits for extra clicks or information fed from other teams to try to improve the trade market. 

Even Giannis himself has been confusing. On one hand, he has said things like "I will never request a trade," and on the other, he's taking shots at his teammates and the lack of the Bucks' ability to compete for a championship. 

NBA insider Chris Haynes, who seems to have a decent pulse on Giannis’ thoughts and wishes, set the record straight on where Giannis stands after this NBA trade deadline. 

"He never requested a trade... Right now, he's happy. I was told he's committed to getting back healthy from the calf injury. He's progressing really well to the point he might even play in the All-Star game. What ultimately stopped a deal from being made? The Bucks were simply in intel gathering phase.... For right now, Giannis is happy, he's focused, and wants to make a playoff push so this thing will extend for another 5 months."

This sounds a lot like damage control. Maybe Giannis never formally requested a trade, but he still wanted to be on a contending team. The Bucks aren’t and won’t be that any time soon. This means Giannis wants to see what life is like on a new team. That’s OK.

Giannis will likely get traded this summer. He would have been traded at the deadline if the teams that had the ability to get him had made offers that the Bucks were interested in.