The 2025-26 NBA Season hasn’t officially ended. But the New York Knicks are one win away from clinching their first title in over a half-century, and we are officially 10 days away from the 2026 NBA Draft.
The latter is also the self-imposed deadline that Milwaukee Bucks owner Jimmy Haslam set for the team to decide Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future. Those talks continue to intensify with the Miami Heat being viewed as the frontrunners. As Frank Sinatra once said, “The end is near,” although recent reporting suggests the Bucks are waiting until the end of the 2026 NBA Finals to make a decision.
The Heat aren’t going to hold back any asset (not named Bam Adebayo) for the two-time MVP — nor should they. But a cumulation of the likely departing names — spearheaded by Tyler Herro and Kel’el Ware — could leave them with little flexibility and depth to build from after.
And one name, in particular, could be the difference maker.
Why Kasparas Jakucionis is important to Giannis sweepstakes:
On the surface, trading Kasparas Jakucionis for a perennial MVP candidate is ridiculously easy. He only played in 53 games as a rookie and still looked quite raw offensively, especially as a ballhandler and decision-maker. In a vacuum, it’s an easy yes for the Heat.
But it’s also not that simple.
Jakucionis, 20, averaged 6.2 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists on 42.3 percent shooting from 3-point range in his rookie season. Outside of Ware, whose inconsistent motor remains a big concern, you could argue that Jakucionis has the highest — or, at the very least, one of the highest — upsides on the team.
He would also provide multiple valuable skills the Heat would be bereft of in many post-Antetokounmpo scenarios: 3-point shooting, point-of-attack defense and passing. Jakucionis would immediately be one of the Heat’s most valuable contracts because of his cost ($3.8 million), and wouldn’t need to be paid for another two seasons, unlike Jaime Jaquez Jr. or Pelle Larsson.
And for all those reasons, he should be a non-negotiable in Jon Horst’s eyes. In fact, while he may not be the headliner, Jakucionis would instantly be one of the Bucks’ best defenders, passers and 3-point shooters.
The second-year guard also has plenty of untapped potential as a playmaker, play finisher and overall defender. And Jakucionis also offers enough positional size and scalability to be malleable, no matter the context.
There is no question that you choose Antetokounmpo over a collection of Ware, Herro, Jaquez, Larsson and Jakucionis, among others. There’s no reason for the Heat to haggle. But unless Giannis puts his fingerprints on his next destination, Jakucionis’ inclusion in the deal could be the difference in whether the Heat acquire Antetokounmpo or not, given his upside, skill set and contract.
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the best youngens are on sas how bout a castle and vasell for wemby.if im milw im calling them
SA gonna trade with themselves?
LOL!
it twas late in the eve u know who i meant
How about adding Harper. After all they are just younguns.
watching ufc sugar sean omalley great ko.derrick lewis got tkod
Gane kicked ass.
Topuria got his kicked in main event.
didnt make the gathpje glad he won.
How about them Canes?
theyre lucky the panthers best players were injured.we always beat carolina in playoffs last few years.cats will be back next year hopefully heat have a contender mickeys well aware of the cats.theres tough competition from the ft laud team for so fla sports fans u wouldnt know about that mr cali
Injuries are part of the game. Like Giannis this past season.
indiana beat us btw how bout them hoosiers
Who is us?
the u 74-79
Arizona fan.
steve kerr sean elliott teddy bruschi offtop of mind athletic greatness
Only rumor I’m seeing is Giannis to Boston. Anybody hearing any new Heat rumors?
I know I’m more out on Giannis than many here, but more than anything I just want him traded so we can move on.
If it’s here, so be it. If it’s elsewhere, back to thinking about the draft.
These next 10 days can’t go by fast enough.
I feel exactly the same
heat have presented their offer.milw must be mulling over other offers now that the season is over.business is open what team would not want to add giannis.the longer it goes on less likely hes coming here. .im putting heat odds 20%,#1 thing for him is a champ not sure pat at his age could pull it off.im thinking he goes to minn okc or maybe spurs
Bucks are apparently holding out for Larsson and/or Jakucionis. That could possibly get Miami Portis and the other Antetokounmpo brother(s) thrown in on the deal. If Bucks are feeling generous, they may even throw in a year’s supply of KY Jelly.
your trading average players for a top 2 player.keshad and gard can fill in for the vanillas that are traded.ware is the only wild card but with his mindset i think hes a limited player.again your trading quantity for quality.more will follow once greek comes to replace our vanillas
You mean quality for potential and a buttload of picks and pick swaps. If it goes through, you have another bonus, 5 more years of Riley.
pat contines as long as he wants .mickey would never never fire pat.pat would never fire spo.we’re fkd.need greek not pelle jaco jjj ware.my opinion im sticking to it. a lineup of dav norm wig greek bam is as good a 5 in nba,pelles jacos jjjs herro not needle movers .those type guys everywhere.the best teams have the greeks of the world
u watching freedom 250.stanley cup?congrats carolina
We were promised bugs. Where are they?
suppose to be lots storms also.love watching o’malley fight prob my fav fighter.derrick lewis has no stamina.
I like Diego Lopez, Raul Rojas, Muhammad Mokaev and a few others. My son wrestled Bobby “King” Green in high school CIF state qualifying tournament when he was a junior. He had Green in a cradle but couldn’t hold it. Green was too strong and kicked out of it. Bobby won 7-5. He placed top 5 in California state wrestling tournament his junior and senior years. He joined UFC in 2013.
I disagree. Trading potential for quality, plus picks and pick swaps. Not the same as average for quality.
so your not in favor of this trade? ware herro pelle jjj some picks?
He has been very clear on this issue.
9……
I would prefer Ware, Jaquez and Jovic plus picks etc. or Kahwi.
Correct me if I’m wrong on this, but I think some people misinterpret our position on the issue. I believe both of us (and others) fully acknowledge that Giannis is one of the better players in the league and we would be happy to see him in a Heat uniform. I just feel there are other moves that can be made that will give us a shot at contending without giving up all of our current and future assets.
EXACTLY. A trade is one thing. Gutting your roster of its future is another. Its like putting all your chips on one roll of the dice and hoping for the best outcome. The only person who would entertain that trade is one who is desperate or one who does not plan for the long term.
Hilarious SunMan! Thought same exact thing. If Heat give away everything…Bucks new name will be Miami Heat North ! Yeah Pat probably wearing some dark brown shorts today.
dolphins brought milw here qb hc gm
And getting ready to lather a large handful of KY Jelly to lessen the pain.
Boston has made a trade offer for Giannis that includes Jaylen Brown. I hope Pat has a Plan B he is ready to pursue.
kawhi plan b.there is no plan c (cry)
In sports, as in life, you have to have alternate plans.
whats heat alternate plans no kawhi no greek
Dig a hole and jump in, I guess, if that’s your approach. My team will be fine.
Plan C:
Fine, now forward it to Debbie Downer ⬆️
I don’t want to confuse him with the facts.
Plan c is probably trade for ja or build for next year free agency
free agents came here because of d wade pats nothing w/o wade u can say.
Riley was something long before Wade.
That works too. Herro and Jovic for Morant plus a 2nd rounder coming back.
Unless another team swoops him up while Riley sits there waiting, wishing and hoping.
I doubt it. Why? Bucks doesnt have a structure to support him. And he is very expensive.
Bucks needs young players and picks.
I tend to agree. But if a third team is involved, Brown could be flipped to that team for young players and more picks. Brown has high value right now.
Bucks are possibly trying to squeeze the very best offer they can out of Miami so they can use it as leverage to squeeze the best offer possible out of Boston or any other interested team(s). Riley/Miami may just be a pawn in this game.
milw doesnt want brown he would go to a 3rd team.
I said that 8 hours ago.
when chris bosh is your third best player when og annonoby is your third best when bam adebayo your third best rc and i meet at a parade ,greek derozan would fit the bill for jewelry
josh hart for cam reddish u kidding me.one of the most lopsided trades in nba history .og for barrett quickley.nyk won that one to but not super lopsided.this is pats last hurrah theres ways to get better w/o a ss involved but u must get that ss also.credit leon rose
There’s no team to fear in the NBA right now. It’s wide open, and there are so many ways to win it all. Heat fans—this is our moment. Let’s make moves and go big!
If anything, I never thought NY is that good. A little bit better then Miami, but not for much.
I still think, that SA was a better team in those finals… but not experienced enough. Kids don’t win titles in NBA.
The good thing is, that Heat are not that far from the top previously believed. An addition of an elite player could do the trick.
Knicks showed you can still win a championship In this modern nba through free agency. Also their bench isn’t even that good. I still fear okc tho ngl they took baby spurs to 7 without jdub and Ajay, and got refs in they back pocket with numerous flop artists. But we got a chance all we need is luck. Look how lucky, but stupid the mavs are. They had both Luka and Brunson and let them go. But still got Cooper flag, they don’t deserve none of them.
Yes, luck plays an important part. No one knew how good Brunson would become. He averaged 9,8,13, and 16 in his 4 years in Dallas.
He has averaged over 24 in the 4 years since.
let vlad loose and kj think wed be pleasantly surprised if they got 20 mins a game.if kornett can play guarantee u vald is better just needs pt.and experience
Sorry, that guarantee holds no weight.
it holds 210 lbs of weight.dude can play spobot very stubborn coach.pat prob told him to play spojovic.64 million times
I don’t know that. I haven’t seen that on the NBA level, so nobody can guarantee that to me. It might be true and I hope it is, but there are 30 teams that have not given him a standard contract.
So its done. I m happy for Brunson, he is maybe the best American player at the moment. Of course, I cant be happy NY won.
That’s brings us to more important things. One way or another, the Giannis situation should be resolved in a week or so.
Very poor coaching. Inexperienced coach and players. First time in big show. Won’t be the last
that depends on wembys health wear and tear on those long limbs gonna play a role.humans built like that run up and down on hard ct get banged by much stronger guys and who plays dirty gonna come back to bite his ass.f the cheatin spurs.turned off ac in finals have had 3 iconic centers and my generals nada.hope for good health for him but no rings hes dirty and a spur.
The first time the Heat get a legit center with potential in years, they can’t wait to trade him away.
to get greek u gotta do it for kawhi i wouldnt
Not if you give away most/all of team’s younger players (except Jovic) and future draft picks. To me, that would be a sign of weakness and desperation. But that’s just my opinion.
brunson took 100 million less to get him help.theres a qb use to play for pats would do that alot.
When you look up closer in the dictionary Brunson’s face is next to it.
my dictionary has a pic of mariano rivera
Your dictionary is outdated.
good one ill update it
I wish more SS would normalize taking a paycut, if they really serious about winning. Even dwade took a paycut. If Jimmy would’ve took a paycut he would of been closer to winning a ring, even players he called soft like kat and wiggy won a ring before him.
jimmy deserved a ring but pat let him down .kept bam as a center which he isnt especially versus joker.i hate jimmy now but the way he played in the playoffs deserved a ring needed little more pat failed him
The other way to say this is, I wish the NBA didn’t have a salary cap and guaranteed more league revenue went to players.
So you like the way the Dodgers win championships?
u can make an arguement brunson best player in nba
You can. Most would not. He certainly was the best player over the last several weeks.
He’s the best today!
milw wanted to wait till finals ova somebody wake pat up
is wemby a top 5 dirty player?
He’s definitely working his way up. There are another 5+ out there.
he purposely put his foot in jbs landing area what an egregious miss of a call(ya think the nba didnt want more game$)
Wemby needs a big physical PF enforcer playing next to him.
hes a 7 5 pg
if fox plays average spurs sweep.just saying.last comment to a great great finals
SA owes Fox $20M+ next 4 seaons.
Make that $200M+ over 4 years.
wemby dunks and 3s thats it
Also rebounds, plays dirty and whines.
defensively with that wingspan and agility none better .didnt really get to see rusell play,rebounding of course hes 5 inches taller than next guy,dont think his whining is excessive the biggest whiner i think is our own unc.
I saw Russell play. Great defensive player and team leader surrounded by a great supporting cast (Cousy, Sam Jones, Casey Jones, John Havlichec, etc.). I hated them for beating Lakers but respected them for being the gold standard of NBA champions. Russell was a winner. He even won back to back NCAA championships playing for USF (San Fransisco not SoFla) in the 50’s. I think Celtics won 11 or so championships during his career.
whos the goat of d,russell was only 6 9 i believe.wemby swats everything near him
ice man really got old fast jeez
i think vassell castle will be solid players no all stars in them.harpers got the most upside.
spurs led 69% of time wow
wembys best defe player maybe ever but his stamina has to be ?and hes very tall and skinny not sure those limbs can hold up.
He’s playing a lot of minutes cuz Kornet sucks. SA needs better back-up PF/C.
exactly kornett was so bad in this series i would have played ko or just barnes.kornett was jovicish unplayable.deep voice had a bad series with use of personnel
Yup. Coach showed his inexperience.
ok greek where u playing at i believe its your call
Who would you rather have. – Mikel Bridges and Tre Mann or prime Goran Dragic?
bridges hes a great defender .plays every game never hurt.
Ultimately, it was a pretty fair trade.
Depends on if the team needs more offense or defense. Otherwise, Dragic
did we get prime goran here think he maxed out in suns land.who was a better pg rio or goran?
Quien es rio?
wow not a heat fan at the time maybe u were still a suns fan mario chalmers
conozces bird man?
the forked up 5 1sts also brooklyn
i hate all ny teams.hate the cheating spurs.but what a great finals this was
ernie johnsons voice sounds sad
He sounds great to me. Have you had your ears checked lately?
sounds like he just cried
Probably and most likely a Knicks fan
i swear his voice sounds just like after somebody died.im really sick of him on the best halftime show in all sports.need new blood maybe our own jason jackson he would be better has a great affable voice.
mike brown out personneled deep voice.
whats dallas thinking lol
no more hoops dam whats a so fla sports fan to do .marlins at 500 who cares,fins gonna be bad love footballthough .gotta wait 4 months for hoops n hockey
Draft, Summer League, trades, etc.
james dolan was hated in ny for long time enter brunson
in the nba u always have to feel losing first thats so true
16 out of 17 is one of the more amazing runs ever.
atl phily not really good teams.there about the same as the heat.spurs bad use of personnel by deep voice.lack of harper minutes. playing kornett.this nyk team versus our champ teams would not win a game
these nba finals were incred.some of the previous rounds sukd.too many teams make playoffs..fkn $$$ ruining sports
rick brunson started the knicks avalanche
ok somebody wake up the 80 year old time to close on greek
wow harper thats it.ok greek to miami tomorrow
8.8 seconds until possibly opening up trading season.
id rather see two more games rc
Ain’t happening with fox playing lol
I said before this series he would be a key. And he was, but unfortunately a negative not a positive.
Lol you right, and his contract ain’t looking good either.
The Heat will probably trade for him and give up everyone except Jovic.
not sure id trade spojovic for fox consider the $$$ factor
id monitor who hes been associating with lately guy cant go from being top 15 player to daarian jovic that fast
Mr Conspiracy back in da house
facicous rc he just sukd in that series missing wide open js.and that layup block by og also dum ass to.ping pong balls that sht is fishy do it the right way worst draft first.if a team wants to tank let them.my generals should have a wemby by now.spurs already have had 2 wembys glad they lost btw
ware wemby same type builds both need little more muscle
I think Rozier had money on this game. Bad choke by Spurs. Again.
wemby tires out
a true ss mr brunson.when u have those type players dont need whole lotta help as witnessed tonight
Mitch is terrible coach too, if he isn’t getting fired after this, then he’s on hot seat.
agree
These games, especially the last 2, were seriously mismanaged
this game was more on the players .harper played alot previous games lack of harper might have cost them the series.
m rob biggest play of game wemby just too weak
wemby cant finish games to well
wemby out of gas at the end every game
no harrison barnes deep voice scratcher.solid vet just what they need in now
harpers d incred
put wemby in deep voice i dont care how tired he is
wy would u put kornett in jeez deep voice
daarian jovic what has happened to him
get ball in hands of harper deep voice
kat dum push i was annointing u ss status thats hasbeen revoked dum ass
i would sit castle hes been jovicish