Knicks Could Acquire Jrue Holiday To Entice Giannis Antetokounmpo

Merlin sees contending teams quietly plotting. The idea is simple: acquire Jrue Holiday first to make a Giannis Antetokounmpo pursuit more appealing. Giannis reportedly wants to play with his former teammate; as Ian Begley noted, Holiday is "a guy he wants to play with." Moving Holiday would be a clear signal of intent and could nudge a club up Giannis’s list. Merlin warns the path is costly. Holiday is 35 and carries heavy salary commitments—$32.4 million this season, $34.8 million next, and a $37.2 million player option in 2027-28. Any team must match that money and accept the age risk. If Holiday is traded before February, expect a genuine run at Giannis, but the transaction hurdles remain steep.