Could Warriors be big players in Giannis trade sweepstakes?

The Warriors don’t have a healthy superstar to offer in a trade package for Giannis Antetokounmpo, but that may not stop them from making a serious push for the Milwaukee Bucks’ superstar.

Antetokounmpo made it clear Wednesday — through ESPN’s Shams Charania’s reporting — that he is ready to leave the only NBA city he has called home.

The two-time Most Valuable Player could very well be dealt before the NBA’s Feb. 5 trade deadline. Reports dating back to the summer linked him to the New York Knicks, and analysts have pointed to the Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets as teams with the combination of young players and draft capital that could entice the Bucks, if they had to move on from him.

But the Warriors — whose interest in Antetokounmpo over the last half-decade has been well documented — could be in the mix, according to reports Wednesday.

“The Warriors hold all of their future draft assets. They can trade all of them, up to four firsts, swaps and stuff like that,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on ‘NBA Today’. “Steph Curry is there, they have an immediate need for a star player. This is where this discussion begins, is Golden State. Everybody else is going to have to try to beat a strong Golden State offer if it comes.”

Windhorst positioned the Warriors as a top contender for the 31-year-old superstar, particularly when considering a straight two-team trade.

Golden State’s future picks could be extra attractive to Milwaukee if the Bucks expect the Warriors to fall off when Curry, who turns 38 in March, eventually retires.

The Warriors’ playoff outlook took a big blow last week when Jimmy Butler tore his ACL. General manager Mike Dunleavy told reporters after the injury that the Warriors didn’t plan to trade Butler and his two-year, $111 million contract.

But Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix reported earlier this week that the Warriors had “made it known that a (Jonathan) Kuminga/Butler-headlined package with a cache of draft picks could be available” if Antetokounmpo were to request a trade.

If the Bucks wind up dealing Antetokounmpo they could to wait until the summer, when more teams could be in position to make strong offers.

For what it’s worth, all three forwards involved in that report are currently injured: Kuminga missed the Warriors’ weekend series in Minneapolis with a bone bruise in his knee, and Antetokounmpo went down Friday night with a calf strain that he self-diagnosed would keep him out 4-6 weeks.

Sitting in eighth place in the West at 26-22 entering Wednesday’s game at Utah, the Warriors don’t look like a serious threat to make a deep playoff run after Butler’s injury. They didn’t have to fork over huge future assets to add Butler last year, but Antetokounmpo is a star on a different level. Would they mortgage their post-Curry future to go all-in on the next two seasons with two former MVPs?

We just might find out over the next week.

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