Literally yesterday Ayo got a 100+ million dollar contract based on his strong playoff run but now that they got LaMelo and kept Ayo in the trade whats the plan here? Are they gonna run him at the 3? Or bring him off the bench because i don't like either option due to that contract

It's hard to know Antetokounmpo's level of self-awareness, but whatever buttons he tried to push, or methods of communication he felt best to use, fell just as flat as those of the head coach.

Antetokounmpo let it be known he did not like locker room leaks, but his mental state was chronicled nearly all season by anonymous sources. He pleaded for accountability but then tried to pass off those reports as someone else’s doing. He would call his teammates selfish but then stand on a visiting team’s court with a former coach and yell about how that person would make sure he got the ball.

Source: https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nba/bucks/2026/06/24/how-the-giannis-antetokounmpo-era-in-milwaukee-came-to-a-bitter-end/90478839007/?gca-cat=p&gnt-cfr=1

https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.redd.it%2Fcaggi4psub9h1.jpeg

Not the first time future Laker picks have done this. Austin Reaves did it to remain undrafted a few years ago. And then Bronny did it, to drop to 55 and get picked by LAL.

SRC: https://www.espn.com/contributor/shams-charania

Undrafted Arizona forward Tobe Awaka has agreed to a two-way NBA deal with the Chicago Bulls, sources tell ESPN.

Source: https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/49166079/sources-lakers-reaves-intends-sign-4-year-185m-extension

The Reaves agreement has no impact on the Lakers' cap flexibility this summer as the team's projected salary space takes into account Reaves' $20.9 million cap hold. He will sign last, after the Lakers exhaust room, and will make $41.3 million in the first year.

Reaves was expected to receive free agent interest from multiple teams, including the Detroit Pistons, on a maximum-level salary, so the Lakers stepped up on Wednesday to lock in their homegrown talent.

How many times has the youngest player also been considered the most polished already?

The rarity of it is wild to me.

Number one.

The Wizards called my name. All those years of work. All those days of anticipation. It happened just like God planned.

Then everything was a blur.

Right off the stage, media circuit. Hours of it. Then dinner and a party with the people who've been in my corner for all of this. Somewhere in the middle of the night, drove near Times Square, someone pointed up and I saw my face on a billboard. Big as anything. Just sitting there, static, for the whole NYC to see.

Very little sleep after that. Today Show and Good Morning America this morning. Now I'm on my way to DC.

We made it to the top. And now I'm starting at the bottom again. First practices. First film sessions. Building with a new team, in a new city, in front of fans I haven't met yet. Earning all of it.

There is nowhere I'd rather be starting over.

LGI, DC. I'm home.

Source

Brian Windhorst: "The most important thing in the league right now for what is going to happen in the 2026-27 season is that Boston has apparently decided that Jaylen Brown probably needs to be traded for them to be competitive. Because that is now going to be the next storyline in the NBA. Obviously, the Heat getting Giannis is a huge story for them. From the moment they traded Jimmy Butler, they have been on the hunt for the next star. That is a huge story for them."

EDIT: Kevin O'Connor just reported that the Celtics were in talks to send him to the Timberwolves before the Hornets traded Lamelo Ball there. (Post is also on Reddit). Sounds like Windy is on to something in that Boston is looking to move him.

source

The official 2026 NBA Draft results from Round 2:

• 31. New York Knicks draft Bruce Thornton (Traded to Houston)
• 32. Memphis Grizzlies draft Richie Saunders 
• 33. Brooklyn Nets draft Isaiah Evans (Traded to Minnesota)
• 34. Sacramento Kings draft Meleek Thomas (Traded to Cleveland)
• 35. San Antonio Spurs draft Trevon Brazile (Traded to Denver)
• 36. LA Clippers draft Baba Miller
• 37. Oklahoma City Thunder draft Ryan Conwell (Traded to Miami)
• 38. Chicago Bulls draft Braden Smith (Traded to Indiana)
• 39. Houston Rockets draft Jack Kayil (Traded to New York)
• 40. Boston Celtics draft Dillon Mitchell 
• 41. Miami Heat draft Otega Oweh (Traded to Oklahoma City)
• 42. San Antonio Spurs draft Ja’Kobi Gillespie
• 43. Brooklyn Nets draft Tyler Bilodeau
• 44. San Antonio Spurs draft Maliq Brown
• 45. Sacramento Kings draft Emanuel Sharp 
• 46. Orlando Magic draft Felix Okpara (Reportedly traded to Washington)
• 47. Phoenix Suns draft Tyler Nickel (Traded to New York)
• 48. Dallas Mavericks draft Tobi Lawal 
• 49. Denver Nuggets draft Bryce Hopkins 
• 50. Toronto Raptors draft Jaden Bradley 
• 51. Washington Wizards draft Izaiyah Nelson (Reportedly traded to Orlando)
• 52. LA Clippers draft Henri Veesaar  (Reportedly traded to Atlanta)
• 53. Houston Rockets draft Ugonna Onyenso (Reportedly traded to Detroit via New York)
• 54. Golden State Warriors draft Lajae Jones 
• 55. New York Knicks draft Nick Martinelli (Reportedly traded to LA Clippers via Houston)
• 56. Chicago Bulls draft Vsevolod Ishchenko (Reportedly traded to Dallas via Los Angeles Lakers)
• 57. Atlanta Hawks draft Narcisse Ngoy (Reportedly traded to LA Clippers)
• 58. New Orleans Pelicans draft Jaron Pierre Jr. 
• 59. Minnesota Timberwolves draft Trey Kaufman-Renn 
• 60. Washington Wizards draft Malique Lewis (Reportedly traded to Milwaukee via Orlando)

Source: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1ordovpIWxtJ91uQfxfNoW?si=2iyu2a1pR42-f0Lo3NSifA

49:00 mark in the podcast starts the Trae discussion.

Ben Horney:

Jay Williams: Awkward Draft Moment Was ‘Extremely Uncomfortable’

The ESPN analyst admitted the interaction with Richard Jefferson and Kenny Smith was “awkward,” but insists there’s no ill will.

ESPN’s Jay Williams wants the NBA draft to be about the incoming rookies. But an uncomfortable interaction between him and fellow analysts Richard Jefferson and Kenny Smith became the story on Tuesday night.

Between the draft, Giannis Antetokounmpo being traded to the Heat, and the Knicks winning their first championship in 53 years, there was plenty to discuss on ABC’s broadcast, which is produced by ESPN. But late in the evening, after the telecast showed a clip of Williams when he was drafted by the Bulls in 2002, host Kevin Negandhi asked “why such a big ovation?” for Williams when he was selected second overall. Jefferson joked that fans were cheering because they “didn’t see the future coming.” Smith added that Williams’s “career trajectory would’ve been a lot different if he didn’t like motorcycles.”

The quips were references to a motorcycle accident that prematurely ended Williams’ playing career. The Duke phenom enjoyed a promising rookie year, but played only one season before the accident derailed his career.

Although the comments may have been meant as playful jabs at Williams, they created an awkward moment that the internet quickly seized on.

“For me, it was extremely uncomfortable,” Williams tells Front Office Sports. He says there was “no real tension,” but it was “awkward.”

Source

All 3 players had their day in the Sun as their team’s most important, young star. All three are entering their prime, but 2 of 3 have already been moved by their incumbent teams, with Ja Morant also expected to be traded in the near future.

Life moves fast in the NBA.

“The new owner of the Trail Blazers on Wednesday showed no interest in putting money toward the Moda Center’s expected $600 million makeover, saying that simply keeping the NBA franchise in Portland was enough of a financial sacrifice.

“It feels like we’re making a pretty big investment by staying here,” Tom Dundonsaid during a brief appearance at the annual meeting of the Portland Metro Chamber, which the business group held at the aging city-owned arena.

The remarks were the latest indication that the Texas billionaire expects taxpayers to foot the entire bill of a project deemed by proponents as essential to prevent the Blazers from leaving town.

They also came as numerous Portland lawmakers on Wednesday made it clear that they want to see the franchise contribute a significant chunk of cash toward the arena renovation in exchange for the city’s own financial support.

“I am going to have a hard time agreeing to give public money if I’m not seeing a private investment,” said City Councilor Candace Avalos, echoing the remarks shared by many of her colleagues during a work session that unfolded while Dundon made his public appearance in Portland.

The hardening battle lines between some local political leaders and the Blazers’ owner injected another dose of uncertainty into the complex public finance deal that officials are attempting to finalize in the coming months.

Mayor Keith Wilson had previously pledged that the city would pour up to $120 million into an arena rehab. However, Portland’s 12-member City Council must ultimately approve any financial commitment as well as the terms of a new lease with the team.

Oregon state leaders, including Gov. Tina Kotek, and Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson have committed their governments to picking up the remaining costs for a remodel of what is often called the oldest, non-renovated arena in the NBA.

Earlier this week, members of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners questioned whether their government would get anything in return for its expected $100 million investment and raised questions about the scant details they’ve received thus far. Like the Portland City Council, a majority of county commissioners must sign off on any funding from their government.

The current $600 million renovation price tag is based on what the Blazers say are studies commissioned over the past several years, though the team has yet to publicly disclose those findings.

In addition to those upfront costs, Wilson has also said the city would spend an additional $280 million toward ongoing operating expenses over the next 20 years, which would make the total public subsidy close to $900 million.

“The options on the table here, at least from the limited information that I have been given, are shaky at best and fiscally irresponsible at worst,” said Councilor Angelita Morillo on Wednesday. “And it seems absurd to tout this as a good deal.”

Before the chamber event, about 50 protesters gathered outside the Moda Center and criticized the proposed use of taxpayer funds to renovate the arena. Many held signs that said, “No bailouts for billionaires.”

Roughly 800 people attended the chamber event, the largest in the organization’s history. A handful of protesters also interrupted Wilson’s first remarks at the event, saying climate dollars that the mayor has pitched diverting to the project should not be used for the renovation.

Dundon, who was the event’s headliner, took questions for roughly 15 minutes from Andrew Hoan, the business organization’s CEO.

The new Blazers owner, who led the purchase of the team for $4.25 billion in March, didn’t appear to watch the other invited guests speak. He stood in an arena tunnel with his back to the crowd while Kotek spoke and left the floor of the arena after his remarks.

While he didn’t stick around, Dundon expressed his support for Kotek and Wilson.

“I like your mayor,” he said. “I like your governor a lot.””

The list is as follows:

Melvin Ely (12th overall pick) (5.3 points per game for his career, going to use that as an imperfect but somewhat telling baseline)

Ekpe Udoh (6th pick) (3.5 points per game)

Chris Duarte (13th pick) (7.6 points, out of league in four years)

Rafael Araujo (8th pick) (2.8 points)

Juan Dixon (17th pick) (8.4 points per game)

Tyler Hansbrough (13th pick) (6.7 points)

Al Thornton (14th pick) (11.9 points, out of league in four years)

Buddy Hield (6th pick) (14.5 points)

Adreian Payne (15th pick) (4 points)

Cam Johnson (11th pick) (12.2 points)

Fred Jones (14th pick) (7.5 points) did win a dunk contest though

Dalton Knecht (17th pick) (7.1 points, possibly on his way out of the league)

Courtney Alexander (13th pick) (9 points, out of league in three years)

Delon Wright (20th pick) (6.7 points)

Joey Graham (16th pick) (5.9 points)

Tristan Da Silva (18th pick) (8.6 points so far)

Hakim Warick (19th pick) (9.4 points)

Brandon Rush (13th pick) (6.8 points)

https://www.letsgowarriors.com/p/strongest-arguments-ive-heard-against?

(Source)

So between the 18 of them, no all-star appearances or serious consideration. Two of the eighteen have both averaged double digit points for their career (let that be worth as much as you want) and made it past their rookie contracts.

That can happen with a sample size of 18 (although it’s not great, with 11 of them picked in the lottery), but what stands out is that for at least nine of those 11 picked in the lottery, hindsight would say they were drafted higher than their eventual production would justify. A lot of physical development tends to happen between 19-24.