Pelicans offseason plan just got flipped upside down by head-scratching Giannis' call

One of the biggest dominoes heading into the 2026 NBA trade deadline was the potential that Giannis Antetokounmpo could be traded by the Milwaukee Bucks. With just a week from the deadline, it was reported by ESPN's Shams Charania that the two sides were going to explore trade options. However, the deadline passed, and after all the back-and-forth, it appears Giannis is happy to stay put.

Following the deadline, Giannis took to social media and posted the same statement and video clip both on X (formerly Twitter) and his Instagram. The clip was from The Wolf of Wall Street, in a scene where the main character, Jordan Belfort, repeatedly says, "I'm not leaving," and the caption to this video reads, "Legends don’t chase. They attract." Now I'm no detective, but from my perspective, that looks like a message from someone pretty committed to remaining a Buck for the foreseeable future.

Now, for all the Bucks fans out there, this is incredible news, but for Pelicans fans, Giannis staying put has serious repercussions. The Pelicans own the rights to the Bucks' 2027 first-round pick, and it was widely viewed as one of the team's top assets heading into the offseason—or at least it was at the time.

With Giannis appearing to be recommitted and his message on social media suggesting his focus is attracting stars to Milwaukee to play alongside him, the value of that pick has completely tanked.

From premium asset to question mark

This season, the Bucks are 15-15 when Giannis plays and 5-14 when he does not play. That alone highlights just how much value a pick part of year one of the post-Giannis era in Milwaukee could've been.

Instead, the likely path Milwaukee takes the rest of the season is embracing the tank and letting Giannis get back to full health. This could lead to the Bucks securing a top pick and then using their remaining draft capital to acquire a secondary star for Giannis. There's seriously a reality where the Bucks end up drafting a potential generational player in either Cam Boozer or AJ Dybantsa, and then still go out and trade for one of the league's disgruntled stars, like Ja Morant.

With moves like that, the Bucks would be right back to being among the top competitors in the Eastern Conference.

At one point, the Bucks' first-rounder was a lifeline for a Pelicans fan base that's watching their team hold a 13-40 record and doesn't own their own first-round pick this season. But now, this pick just represents another mismanaged asset by the Pels front office. Instead of trading it at peak value during this past deadline, several teams were working to build a compelling offer to acquire the two-time MVP. They held on to it and waited, and now the future value of that pick is incredibly unclear.

Sure, with all the flip-flopping Giannis has done this entire season, maybe, just maybe, there's still a chance he requests a trade this summer, and that pick regains its once-high value. But at the same time, the likelihood of that appears lower than ever.