Milwaukee is now asking Boston to put Hugo González and a higher-value 2026 first-round pick into a Giannis Antetokounmpo package that could be decided within hours. The move raises the price on a deal that has narrowed to two destinations and could be settled before the Draft ceremony.
That is why Gonzalez has suddenly become part of the search around Antetokounmpo. Boston is being discussed as a real contender, while Miami remains in the picture as the other destination left on the table. The shift matters because this is no longer just about whether the Bucks move the two times MVP. It is also about which young pieces and draft assets Milwaukee can pull out of the return.
Marc Stein said Boston now had a real chance of getting Antetokounmpo, and Brad Stevens would be willing to include Jaylen Brown in the offer. That gives the Celtics a path that is more serious than it looked only last week, when Eric Nehm said Stevens had not even contacted the Bucks for fear Brown would feel singled out or placed on the market. In the span of a few hours, the conversation moved from caution to a deal that could involve one of Boston’s biggest names.
Milwaukee, though, is not treating any current offer as enough. The Bucks want more draft value, specifically Gonzalez and a 2026 first-round pick that would carry more weight than Boston’s current pick 27. The cleanest version for Boston would send Brown, Gonzalez and a stronger first-round pick obtained through a parallel trade to Milwaukee, which shows how much additional value the Bucks are trying to extract before they move the face of the franchise.
Miami has been described as more aggressive for weeks and willing to pay a high cost, but that has still not fully convinced Milwaukee. Boston’s package is said to be more attractive, yet the Bucks are still pressing for another young piece and a better future pick. The result is a deal structure that could stretch beyond a simple star swap and reach into Boston’s roster planning and draft board at the same time.
Shams Charania said the trade should be closed in the next few hours, and the expectation is that it will be resolved before the Draft ceremony in the early hours of Tuesday to Wednesday. That gives Milwaukee a short window to decide whether Gonzalez and a stronger 2026 first-round pick are enough to finish what has become the NBA’s biggest offseason question.
