The Magic have, unfortunately, made a wise decision in choosing Sean Sweeney as their next head coach. He's no Erik Spoelstra, of course, but he's a great addition for Orlando, one that could lead to Giannis Antetokounmpo going to Florida, just not to the Miami Heat.
Sweeney was an assistant with the Bucks from 2014-18, so he has an existing relationship with Antetokounmpo, who prefers to stay in the East. As The Stein Line previously reported, Miami and Boston are believed to be Giannis' current top two destinations, but that was before Orlando hired its new coach.
At the end of the day, the Bucks will have the final say in where Antetokounmpo goes, but his opinion holds weight, as he will enter the last guaranteed season on his contract. If Milwaukee tries its best to work with Giannis, and he's open to committing to Orlando long term, then maybe the Magic would be willing to give up Paolo Banchero in a deal.
Sean Sweeney shares Bucks ties with Giannis Antetokounmpo
Along with several other teams, Orlando reached out to Milwaukee about a Giannis trade before the deadline. Last week, Eric Nehm and Sam Amick of The Athletic reported that, as for the Magic (subscription required), there had "been no discussions at this point about pursuing Antetokounmpo this summer." The keywords are at this point.
That doesn't mean that Orlando wouldn't have decided to make a serious push for Giannis, even without hiring Sweeney. Now that he will be around, though, that could give the Magic more of a reason to go after Antetokounmpo, especially if he makes it known he wants to play there.
Heat could have to compete with Magic in Giannis trade
Losing out on yet another star would be painful enough to digest for Miami, but in this case, if it were Orlando that swooped in to snag Antetokounmpo, that would triple the hurt.
The Magic would have an edge over the Heat if they made Banchero available, giving the Bucks the 2022 No. 1 pick to build around in their post-Giannis era. Miami couldn't compete in that department — Kel'el Ware and Jaime Jacquez wouldn't cut it.
After watching New York dominate in the playoffs, and knowing that Oklahoma City and San Antonio aren't going anywhere anytime soon, Orlando could be willing to push its chips in. If Antetokounmpo does want to play for the Magic, that could be enough for them to do it. Players of his stature don't come around often.
Miami can only hope that Orlando won't register serious interest in Antetokounmpo this summer. It will sting if he ends up anywhere else, even if it's across the country, but even more so if he's just a few hours down the road.
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