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Bennett Durando: With Christian Braun returning tonight, sounds like the Nuggets may rest Spencer Jones so that he’s available tomorrow for back-to-back in New York, per sources. He has one game of eligibility remaining on his two-way contract until Denver can convert him to a standard deal.
Comedian Druski and adult content creator Sky Bri stirred buzz online after attending the Knicks-Lakers game together in New York on Sunday. The pair were all smiles sitting next to diehard Knicks fan, Spike Lee, on celebrity row at Madison Square Garden. Druski, born Drew Desbordes, and Bri were seen getting out of a dark SUV together as they entered the world’s most famous arena.
Per league sources, the Knicks will be one of several teams that have and will continue to inquire heavily about Antetokounmpo. The Bucks are looking for a premier young player(s) and multiple, good draft picks in exchange for one of the three best players in the NBA. The Knicks have neither of those, and to get close to what the Bucks are asking for, New York would need to trade two or three players in its starting lineup, most likely OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and/or Karl-Anthony Towns. The latter two, per multiple league sources, aren’t believed to have the same value today as when the Knicks traded for them, so that could be a hurdle in itself. It’s unclear if the Knicks and Dolan are willing to give up their hopes of making the finals this season in order to acquire Antetokounmpo sooner rather than later. New York hasn’t been as good as many projected coming into the season, but it’s still a good team and the Eastern Conference’s only dominant squad is the young Pistons.
Most likely to be traded: Guerschon Yabusele, Pacome Dadiet, Jordan Clarkson and Tyler Kolek. New York has been on the hunt for a proven ballhandler for its second unit and big-man insurance. To get either one of those without breaking up its core group, these are the names the Knicks would most likely have to part with. Dadiet, a recent first-round pick, doesn’t play and the Knicks, who are close to the second apron, can’t take in more money than they send out, so they might have to add another salary to Yabusele depending on who they trade for. The same goes for Kolek, except he’s shown some flashes here and there in Year 2. Clarkson is on a veteran minimum after getting bought out by the Jazz last offseason. He signed with the Knicks, expecting to play. However, he’s been out of the rotation. It feels more likely that Clarkson gets bought out than traded if he and New York part ways, but his salary could be useful in a small deal.
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The WNBA and the players’ union will meet in person in New York City on Monday for the first time since the fall amid stalled CBA negotiations. Talking to reporters at Unrivaled, Kelsey Plum said she and fellow union VP Napheesa Collier will travel to New York after their teams play each other in Miami on Sunday night. WNBPA president Nneka Ogwumike will be in attendance as well, along with the league’s CBA leadership, labor relations committee, and league and union staff, a source with direct knowledge of the meeting told Front Office Sports. The meeting will also include team owners.
The Timberwolves are rarely mentioned as a Giannis contender on par with Miami, Golden State and New York ... but multiple sources we've spoken to say they should be. Difficult as it is, on one hand, to regard Minnesota as a threat on that level when it currently has nothing of draft consequence to offer beyond a first-round pick swap in 2028, The Stein Line has learned that Antetokounmpo has quietly had the Timberwolves in his thoughts dating to the offseason. League sources say that the prospect of teaming up with Anthony Edwards holds strong appeal for Antetokounmpo, which led to some notable backchannel discussions in recent months that lend true legitimacy to Minnesota's status as a potential landing spot despite the undeniable obstacles that the Timberwolves would face.
Ian Begley: Giannis Antetokounmpo stated privately that he wanted to play in New York as recently as this past offseason. And part of the reason he wanted to come here, I was told, was that he was enticed by the idea of winning a title in New York — something the Knicks haven't done since 1973.
For a brief window this past summer, the Bucks and the New York Knicks engaged in discussions about a potential Antetokounmpo trade. Sources told ESPN that New York never believed Milwaukee seriously entertained the idea of moving Antetokounmpo then, however, and those in Milwaukee believe New York never made a strong enough offer to continue discussing the trade.
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The Bucks picked up the Knicks' call on Antetokounmpo for an exclusive negotiating window after New York emerged as the only destination he wanted to play for outside of Milwaukee, sources told Charania over the summer, but Milwaukee maintained its superstar was not available throughout the first half of the '25-26 season. League sources have long believed that it was going to take a more forceful effort from Antetokounmpo to force an exit.
Sean Highkin: Deni Avdija is once again listed as "Questionable" for today against the Wizards. Tiago Splitter said last night that he expects him to play. Programming note: My flight to DC was cancelled so I'm stranded in Boston today and going to New York tomorrow.
Behind the scenes, Knicks officials have tried to downplay any notion that Karl-Anthony Towns could be traded during the season amid New York’s (and Towns') January struggles. However ... A belief persists among some rival teams that Towns is in play to some degree. Or that the Knicks, at the very least, have tried to get a sense of what his market would be.
Sources with knowledge of New York's thinking have insisted it is focused on smaller deals built around Guerschon Yabusele's $5.5 million salary and shedding that contract before Yabusele's $6 million player option for next season kicks in.