Trade speculation ran rampant this offseason about Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James. Antetokounmpo reportedly "considered his future" with the Milwaukee Bucks for the first time this offseason, while James doesn't seem pleased that the Los Angeles Lakers are prioritizing building around Luka Doncic instead of winning now.
Because of that, Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report has proposed a blockbuster five-team trade, where both players move on from their teams. Here are the full details of the trade.
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Brooklyn Nets receive: Dalton Knecht (LAL), Dwight Powell (DAL), Jaden Hardy (DAL)
Dallas Mavericks receive: LeBron James (LAL), Bronny James (LAL), Andre Jackson Jr. (MIL), Tyler Smith (MIL), Drew Timme (BRK)
Los Angeles Lakers Receive: Giannis Antetokounmpo (MIL), Olivier-Maxence Prosper (DAL), Tyrese Martin (BRK), two trade exceptions
Milwaukee Bucks receive: RJ Barrett (TOR), P.J. Washington (DAL), Caleb Martin (DAL), Naji Marshall (DAL), trade exception, 2026 first-round pick swap (LAL), 2026 second-round pick (LAL via TOR), 2028 first-round pick swap (LAL), 2030 first-round pick swap (LAL), 2031 first-round pick (LAL), 2032 first-round pick swap (LAL)
Toronto Raptors receive: Daniel Gafford (DAL), trade exception
Here is Pincus' explanation for why the Mavericks would do this trade.
"James may technically be past his prime, nearing 41 in December, but he was still powerful enough to earn All-NBA Second Team honors last season with the Lakers. He's in the final year of his contract, but Dallas would do its due diligence to make sure it gets another couple of seasons from James.
"The Mavericks retain No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg along with Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, Dereck Lively II, Max Christie, Brandon Williams, D'Angelo Russell and Davis. Naturally, Bronny James is part of the deal with his legendary father. Smith is the only other addition with a fully guaranteed contract. Dallas can choose to fill out the rest of the roster with a couple of vets at the minimum instead of Jackson or Timme (with a spot still saved for Dante Exum, who has yet to make his deal official)."
It's already been well-documented that the Mavericks currently don't have an interest in trading for LeBron James. They'd sign him on the buyout market, but why not a trade?
Dallas doesn't want to give up any of its depth to add a 41-year-old, and the Mavericks do have a deep team. They believe they're a title contender as things stand now, so giving up a lot of depth doesn't make sense to them.
In this instance, they'd be sending out Daniel Gafford, P.J. Washington, Naji Marshall, Caleb Martin, Jaden Hardy, Olivier-Maxence Prosper, and Dwight Powell while getting back LeBron James, Bronny James, Drew Timme, Tyler Smith, and Andre Jackson Jr. That's sending out 3-4 rotation pieces and getting back one or two. Even if that one is LeBron James, it's hard to rationalize that.