The NBA trade deadline has came and went, and Giannis Antetokounmpo is still a member of the Milwaukee Bucks.
And that prompted Doc Rivers to take a victory lap of sorts by trolling ESPN’s Shams Charania regarding his reporting on the 2-time MVP’s availability.
Taking the podium for a post-deadline press conference, the Bucks head coach cut straight to the chase. Voluntarily providing a “Giannis update,” Rivers noted that his star player will serve as a head coach during next weekend’s NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, which Charania will be playing in.
“You guys want a Giannis update? Alright. OK,” the 64-year-old head coach said. “I was just talking about he’s going to coach the celebrity game. You guys see that? He did inform me that he’s going to put Shams on the trading block today and he’s just going to listen to offers. So I’m just going to go make that announcement right now.”
Just In: Conversations have started about @ShamsCharania’s future, and discussing whether the ESPN Senior NBA Insider’s best fit is staying on Giannis’ All-Star Celebrity team or elsewhere. pic.twitter.com/IS6XMlQSPf
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) February 5, 2026
Get it?
For the uninitiated, Rivers’ comment mirrored the same verbiage that Shams Charania had used in his recent reporting regarding the Greek Freak. That included a report from a week ago, in which the ESPN insider revealed that Milwaukee had begun to “listen to aggressive offers” for the 2021 NBA Finals MVP, who was “ready for a new home.”
Yet despite all indications being that Antetokounmpo — and perhaps even Milwaukee — were ready for a split, no deal ever came to fruition before Thursday’s deadline. Such trade talks could very well be revisited in the offseason. But in the meantime, it appears Giannis is looking to make a trade of his own by shopping Charania, who hasn’t shy to brag about his on-court ability ahead of next weekend’s exhibition in Inglewood.
“I’m a shooter, I can handle the ball and I can make my floaters,” Charania said of his game during an appearance on SportsCenter last week.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.