RealGM Basketball Wiretap

07 February 2026

• Doc Rivers: Giannis Antetokounmpo 'Getting Close' To Return

  Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers stated that Giannis Antetokounmpo was "getting close" to returning from a calf injury and that the team has no plans of shutting down the star for the season.

  "He's going to play when he's healthy," Rivers said on Friday. "We just got to make sure he's healthy. He's getting close. He's working out. He looks good. So I would say hopefully sooner than later."

  Rivers did not provide a timetable for Antetokounmpo's return. Antetokounmpo suffered the calf strain on January 23 and predicted he'd be out for 4-6 weeks.

  Antetokounmpo did complete a workout on the court on Friday.

  The Bucks are 6-14 on the year without Antetokoumpo. The team remain in 12th place in the Eastern Conference.

• Bucks Waive Nigel Hayes-Davis

  The Milwaukee Bucks have waived forward Nigel Hayes-Davis. Milwaukee acquired Hayes-Davis at the trade deadline from the Phoenix Suns in a three-team deal that also involved the Chicago Bulls.

  Hayes-Davis played limited minutes in 27 games with the Suns this season. Prior to signing with Phoenix, the 6-foot-7 forward had been one of the top players in Europe. Hayes-Davis had excelled for EuroLeague teams in Turkey, Lithuania and Spain.

• Bucks Asked Teams To 'Blow Us Away' With Giannis Antetokounmpo Offers, Never Seemed Serious On Trade

  The Milwaukee Bucks navigated their trade deadline by both listening on Giannis Antetokounmpo trade offers and also working on deals along the margins.

  "They were engaged but they never progressed even really close with Giannis Antetokounmpo and any other team," said Shams Charania on NBA Today's Trade Deadline special. "I had one team tell me that the Bucks essentially told them 'We want you to blow us away.' But it was never given what that means from maybe four, five, six first round picks.

  "So teams involved believe that the Bucks might truly actually feel that they can take this to the summer and try to build another contender around Giannis Antetokounmpo. Try to bring him back on board. That's some of the feelings the Bucks were giving to some teams. This now pushes into the second half of the season, into the offseason. And on October 1, Giannis will be eligible for a four-year, $275 million extension."

  After the deadline passed, Antetokounmpo posted a video of Leonardo DiCaprio's famous speech from "Wolf of Wall Street" where he repeatedly says "I'm not leaving" with the caption of "Legends don't chase. They attract."

  "I would say this just talking to teams: I don't believe Milwaukee ever had any intention of trading Giannis at the deadline," said Bobby Marks. "And that's okay. That's fine. I think the intention of Milwaukee was to see what was out there. Write it down and put it away until June and July. And let's see what else they can top. But the teams I talked to, they just never felt there would be a deal that would materialize."

• Trades That Didn't Happen At Deadline 'Laid Foundation For Wild Summer'

  With Giannis Antetokounmpo not traded at the deadline, there are several open threads across multiple teams that could create a particularly active offseason. The Milwaukee Bucks listened to trade offers for Antetokounmpo for the first time, but decided not to trade him as they hope to either convince him to remain with the franchise long-term or revisit the conversations in the offseason when potentially more teams can offer more for him.

  The Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors aggressively pursued Antetokounmpo at the deadline and could do so again in the offseason. The Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks could join the pursuit depending on what happens in the playoffs for both teams.

  "We are now going to be simmering until summer because there's a lot of unfinished business that didn't get done," said Brian Windhorst on the NBA Today Trade Deadline special. "You go around the league. Everybody on the Heat they were potentially offered in deals. What happens if they have an early exit? A bunch of people in Minnesota know they were offered in deals. What happens if they have an early exit? Obviously the Cavs have gone all-in and shown a willingness to break up their core. What happens if they have an early exit?

  "You will see a revisiting of the Giannis situation in the summer.

  "We know that the Clippers are now in the middle of a controlled tear down. I don't want to use the word 'rebuild.' What about Kawhi Leonard?

  "And then you look at Domantas Sabonis-he was being floated and they couldn't do a deal for him. None of that mentions Ja Morant. The Knicks decided to keep their team together and not go after Giannis-what happens if they don't reach the Finals and do this?

  "In all honesty, while we did not have a super aggressive trade deadline, what has happened is we've laid the foundation for wild summer."

• Bucks Trade Cole Anthony, Amir Coffey To Suns For Nick Richards, Nigel Hayes-Davis

  The Milwaukee Bucks have sent Cole Anthony and Amir Coffey to the Phoenix Suns for Nick Richards and Nigel Hayes-Davis. Milwaukee moved forward with the trade after informing teams they had decided to keep Giannis Antetokounmpo beyond the trade deadline.

  The maneuver will allow the Suns to get below the luxury tax.

  Anthony was averaging just 6.7 points in 15.1 minutes this season with the Bucks following his release by the Orlando Magic.

• Bucks Pull Giannis Antetokounmpo From Trade Block

  The Milwaukee Bucks have informed teams they have pulled Giannis Antetokounmpo from the trade block and will begin focusing on other trade opportunities. Antetokounmpo had informed the Bucks for several months that he is ready to leave the Bucks and that initiated trade conversations, but he subsequently had a number of interviews where he indicated his ideal scenario is for the team to become title contenders again.

  The Golden State Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves, Miami Heat and New York Knicks were the four teams who were most engaged with the Bucks on an Antetokounmpo trade ahead of the deadline. The Warriors pivoted to another trade late Wednesday night in acquiring Kristaps Porzingis, which was the first clear signal that the Bucks would be unlikely to trade Antetokounmpo. The Wolves also made an alternative trade Thursday morning by acquiring Ayo Dosunmu.

  The Bucks still hope to keep Antetokounmpo long-term depending on the results of the lottery in May, but could also reevaluate their trade options in the offseason. Antetokounmpo becomes eligible for a contract extension with the Bucks on October 1st worth up to $275 million over four seasons. If Antetokounmpo is traded in the offseason, he has to wait six months.

• Bucks Ready To Let Giannis Antetokounmpo Situation Wait Until Offseason

  The Milwaukee Bucks appear poised to retain Giannis Antetokounmpo past Thursday's 3 p.m. ET trade deadline despite league-wide speculation. Team sources told ESPN the Bucks feel no "pressure" to deal their franchise cornerstone, dampening expectations that materialized over the past week.

  Rival executives have questioned Milwaukee's willingness to actually complete an Antetokounmpo transaction. The two-time MVP has spent over 12 seasons with the organization.

  The Golden State Warriors eliminated itself from contention late Wednesday by acquiring Kristaps Porzingis from the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for Jonathan Kuminga. The move signaled the Warriors had abandoned pursuit of Antetokounmpo this week.

  The Minnesota Timberwolves and Miami Heat remain potential destinations, with possibility for an unexpected team emerging. Most indicators suggest this saga will extend into the offseason. Several teams included in the talks and many who are not can improve their offers in the offseason when more draft picks become tradeable.

  ESPN's Shams Charania reported Antetokounmpo has desired relocation for months, whether at Thursday's deadline or during the offseason at the conclusion of the current season. Milwaukee listened to offers and engaged with several teams over the past week, marking unprecedented willingness to discuss their star's availability.

  The Bucks began listening to teams over the past week making offers for Antetokounmpo, even engaging and countering a few of them.

  The franchise has not abandoned hope of retaining Antetokounmpo long-term. Milwaukee explored roster upgrades through teams looking to shed future salary commitments.

  The Bucks won consecutive games this week but occupy the No. 12 position in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Chicago Bulls by three games for the No. 10 seed.

  Antetokounmpo could gain greater control over his destination if negotiations continue past Thursday. He becomes extension-eligible on Oct. 1, and with a player option for 2027-28, only one guaranteed contract year remains, potentially allowing him to dictate terms.

• Cavaliers, Blazers Have Shown Interest In Trading For Giannis Antetokounmpo

  The odds of a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade continue to decrease as we approach the trade deadline as both the Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves have executed alternative deals. The Warriors, Wolves and Miami Heat have been the most aggressive, while the New York Knicks have also been linked with trading for Antetokounmpo.

  This could leave a dark horse team if something will unexpectedly be completed by Jon Horst and the Milwaukee Bucks by the trade deadline with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Portland Trail Blazers also on the fringes of the conversations. The Cavaliers have perhaps the best young player to potentially offer in a trade for Antetokounmpo in Evan Mobley, while the Blazers are in the unique position of being able to offer some of Milwaukee's own picks back to them.

  "Yeah, we're pretty much-I've been at 51-49 against a trade," said Brian Windhorst on Get Up on Thursday morning. "I'm now sort of moving more towards 60-40 against a trade. Minnesota is still out there, but I'm going to be honest with you, I don't think Minnesota's offer was as good as Golden State's. And if Golden State's offer is not good enough and Minnesota can't do a trade to improve their offer, I don't think Minnesota is realistic.

  "That, in my mind, leaves Miami. Miami is making a sort of player-and-sort-of-semi-draft-pick offer. It's a decent offer. I don't think it's something that you would stop everything for-for Giannis.

  "There's a couple of other teams out there that have shown interest. Cleveland has shown some interest in Giannis, but they are in a position with James Harden now where they've sort of picked the lane. Portland has sniffed around Giannis. They have the Bucks' draft picks and draft assets from the Damian Lillard trade, but these are not compelling things. So unless there's a secret thing going on, I'm not feeling Giannis moving right now. And Giannis has not forced the issue, and that is probably going to be a factor."

  Windhorst later said on First Take that the Cavaliers are less likely to be in the mix for Antetokounmpo following their trade of Darius Garland for James Harden.

• Wolves, Heat In Play For Giannis Antetokounmpo; Bucks Looking At Ja Morant Trade

  The Minnesota Timberwolves and Miami Heat are believed to still be in the running to trade for Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo ahead of the NBA deadline at 3:00 PM ET on Thursday. However, like where the Golden State Warriors landed when they moved on to trade for Kristaps Porzingis, there is widespread belief that the Bucks will not trade Antetokounmpo before the deadline.

  In part because of reluctance to trade Antetokounmpo, the Bucks are looking at ways to upgrade their roster around their star. One option the Bucks are considering is trading for point guard Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies. Memphis is leaning into a rebuild after trading Jaren Jackson Jr. earlier this week to the Utah Jazz, and could take back a package of shorter contracts and role players for Morant.

• Rival Execs Continue To Wonder If Bucks 'Serious' About Giannis Antetokounmpo Deal At Deadline

  Giannis Antetokounmpo does not appear to be putting any meaningful pressure on the Milwaukee Bucks to trade him by the deadline as he continues to speak with the media about how he wishes he could simply stay with the franchise and continue to compete for titles. But Antetokounmpo has reportedly accepted the reality, which is why he has communicated his preference to be traded.

  The Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks, Miami Heat and Minnesota Timberwolves are the teams with the strongest interest at the trade deadline.

  "To put it plainly, Giannis Antetokounmpo, I'm told, has told the Bucks-communicated to the Bucks for a period of months now-that he believes the time has come to part ways, and that has essentially forced the Bucks to listen to teams, to engage with teams, and remain in touch with teams here this week on the eve of the NBA trade deadline," said ESPN's Shams Charania on NBA Countdown on Wednesday.

  "That includes Miami, Minnesota, Golden State. But at the end of the day, general manager John Horst and Bucks ownership have to sift through the offers and land on the same page about the big question: whether to execute a trade now or push this to the offseason.

  "Even tonight, just moments ago, I talked to several different sources around teams involved, and there are certainly questions about whether Milwaukee is serious and genuine about pulling a move of this magnitude for this franchise at the deadline. There are obvious risk-rewards right now that Milwaukee has to sift through, whether they do it now or wait until the summer. If they wait until the summer, Giannis gets basically an expiring year on his deal. He's got one year left. That gives him a little bit more say-so, a little bit more equity in terms of where he wants to end up and land.

  "And the other side is Milwaukee is likely playing more toward lottery positioning in the second half. And if Giannis wants to play in the second half, that is a direct conflict with goals with both sides. So this is certainly a situation, even if it goes past the deadline, to monitor."