G League Wiretap

New York Knicks owner James Dolan called Leon Rose in 2020 to gauge his interest in running the franchise's basketball operations, a decision that reshaped the organization.

Multiple people warned Rose against leaving his role running CAA's basketball division to take the job running the Knicks. The Knicks had recorded just one playoff series win since 2000, and several respected executives, including Phil Jackson, had previously failed to turn the team around.

Rose had built his reputation as one of basketball's most powerful agents, working closely for years with longtime associate William Wesley. The two had been involved in major moves throughout the sport, including LeBron James' 2010 free agency decision, and Carmelo Anthony's 2011 trade from the Denver Nuggets to the Knicks.

Dolan had maintained a relationship with both men during Anthony's time in New York and valued the loyalty he saw in how they operated. Dolan ultimately turned to Rose and Wesley to lead the franchise's rebuild.

People familiar with Dolan's approach said he largely allowed Rose to operate without interference, a departure from previous ownership involvement. Some attributed this to lessons learned from past failures, while others noted Dolan's attention was split with other business ventures.

Rose's only public guidance from ownership came in January, when Dolan stated the team needed to reach the NBA Finals and should win the championship.

The Knicks went on to do exactly that, defeating the San Antonio Spurs in five games to win the 2026 NBA title, the franchise's first since 1973.

The New York Knicks were prepared to pursue a trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo last summer had the Milwaukee Bucks made him truly available.

Antetokounmpo had indicated to people around the league that he would be open to a trade to New York if Milwaukee moved him. The Knicks expressed interest in exploring the possibility, sources said.

One source with knowledge of the discussions said the Bucks likely had no real intention of trading their superstar during the 2025 offseason. The source added that New York would have made a move for Antetokounmpo if Milwaukee had been willing.

"I don't think Milwaukee was really serious about trading him," the source said. "But if they had been willing to trade him, the Knicks would've traded for him."

At the time, the Knicks believed their roster was talented enough to compete for a championship. The team also felt that hiring Mike Brown as head coach, replacing Tom Thibodeau, would add flexibility for a deep playoff run.

Despite holding interest in Antetokounmpo, New York's roster remained largely intact. The Knicks went on to win the 2026 NBA Finals, defeating the San Antonio Spurs in five games.

Antetokounmpo is now expected to be traded by the Bucks by the 2026 NBA draft with the Knicks effectively off the table and prepared to defend their title. Antetokounmpo is expected to remain in the Eastern Conference with the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics currently considered the two favorites. 

The New York Knicks were very close to trading for Donovan Mitchell in 2022, just months after signing Jalen Brunson, but ultimately did not complete the deal, reports ESPN's Ramona Shelburne

Knicks' executives debated whether Mitchell and Brunson could coexist in the backcourt. Sources said opinions differed internally on whether adding another ball-dominant guard would limit Brunson's role as the team's primary option.

Leon Rose ultimately chose not to meet the Utah Jazz's high asking price for Mitchell. He instead preserved the team's assets to build a roster suited to Brunson's skill set as he had enough left over to trade for Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns.

The Jazz traded Mitchell to the Cleveland Cavaliers and has been eliminated in the playoffs twice by the Knicks over the past four years.

The decision marked a departure from the franchise's history of aggressive trades for star players, including the 2011 deal for Carmelo Anthony that cost New York significant draft capital.

Rose has not publicly explained his reasoning for passing on Mitchell. The approach drew scrutiny during periods when the roster struggled, but support grew as the team's long-term build paid off.

Brunson went on to become the centerpiece of a Knicks roster that won the 2026 NBA championship, capturing Finals MVP honors in the process.

With the 2026 NBA Draft looming just over a week away, the Chicago Bulls are closing in on hiring a new coach. The Bulls have identified four finalists and could make a decision as soon as Monday.

The four finalists for Chicago's opening are Portland Trail Blazers interim head coach Tiago Splitter, Bulls assistant Wes Unseld Jr., Atlanta Hawks assistant Ryan Schmidt and Minnesota Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori.

The Blazers and Dallas Mavericks have the other two current head coach openings in the NBA.

Chicago is searching for a replacement for Billy Donovan, who had been with the franchise since 2020 and remains a coaching free agent.

The Bulls are hiring their first head coach under the new leadership of Bryson Graham.

The Los Angeles Lakers are widely expected to re-sign guard Austin Reaves this offseason. Reaves has a $14.9 million player option that he's going to decline to become an unrestricted free agent in July.

Recent reports have surfaced that the Brooklyn Nets, one of the teams expected to have cap space this offseason, are likely to make a run at Reaves. Despite the fact that Reaves is unrestricted and the Lakers can't officially match offers, Reaves' camp is likely to give Los Angeles a chance to match or beat any offers he receives.

Should the Lakers reach an agreement with Reaves on a new contract, they'll delay signing him to complete their other offseason moves. If Los Angeles goes the cap space route, they could create nearly $50 million in space. They'd use that cap room first, while retaining Reaves' cap hold and Bird rights, then re-sign the combo guard to his new deal.

The Denver Nuggets are looking to move off some salary in order to create the ability to re-sign Peyton Watson this offseason. The player Denver is receiving the most interest in is veteran forward Aaron Gordon. The Nuggets, however, would prefer to trade wing Christian Braun.

Gordon is set to make $31.9 million this upcoming season, with $71.5 million owed to him through the 2028-29 season. The veteran big man holds a player option that final season.

Braun is just starting the five-year, $125 million extension he inked last offseason. The Nuggets will pay Braun $21.5 million for the 2026-27 season.

With everyone in the fold, Denver is roughly $8 million over the second apron. The Nuggets are expected to get off some salary by waiving or trading Jonas Valanciunas, as well as other smaller salary-shedding moves this offseason. In order to create enough wiggle room to re-sign Watson and fill out their roster without going deep into the tax, Denver is expected to explore trading Braun or last season's acquisition, Cameron Johnson.

In an interview with Malika Andrews in the wake of winning the 2026 NBA championship, Jalen Brunson touched on a handful of topics. One thing came through during their conversation: Brunson has no regrets with any of the sacrifices he made to lead the New York Knicks to the title.

When asked if leaving $113 million on the table when he extended his deal with New York was worth it, Brunson didn't hesitate in answering.

"100% worth it. 100% worth it," Brunson said. "Even if we didn't achieve this, I feel like being able to do that and grind and go on a journey to try and achieve it, it would have been worth it as well, but this is definitely the turn on top."

Brunson left money on the table to help the Knicks build on their roster around him. That has helped New York keep Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns in the fold. It could also help the Knicks when they attempt to re-sign Mitchell Robinson and Landry Shamet this offseason.

As for his plans now, Brunson said he's going to celebrate before getting ready to defend his newly won championship. When asked when he'll be hungry for another title, the 2026 NBA Finals MVP said it won't take long.

"After the parade. Yeah, I think I've done a decent job of being able to not look ahead, not look past anything, staying in the moment," Brunson said. "I'm going to try and enjoy this for a little bit and then once it's time to get back to work, it's back to work."

The Boston Celtics reportedly made an offer to the Milwaukee Bucks for Giannis Antetokounmpo last week, according to The Ringer's Bill Simmons. Boston has "dove in" on the Antetokounmpo sweepstakes.

This was a change in tune from Simmons, who had previously reported that he heard Boston wasn't involved in trading for Antetokounmpo. Simmons said he doesn't know what changed the Celtics minds, but that they are now involved in dealing for the superstar forward.

On draft night, the Celtics will hold up to four tradeable first round picks and two swaps.

It's been rumored that any trade for Antetokounmpo would involve the Celtics dealing Jaylen Brown to the Bucks or to a third team, which would then route draft capital and young talent to Milwaukee. Rumored third teams have included the Atlanta Hawks, New Orleans Pelicans, Portland Trail Blazers and others.

The Athletic reported recently that Antetokounmpo would sign with the Celtics long-term if he were traded to the franchise.

In a recent interview with HoopsHype, Orlando Magic wing Franz Wagner touched on several topics, most of them surrounding his health. Wagner admitted that he had some missteps with managing his health last season. He also said he's training to be healthier for next season.

Wagner said that in retrospect, he should have passed on playing in the NBA Berlin Game last season while recovering from a high ankle sprain.

"The way it went, I probably shouldn't have played. Everybody understands the situation that it was, and honestly, I hate to say it, but I don't really regret the decision to play. It was that special of a moment for me, and for a lot of other people who were there," Wagner said. "So, it just happened to be a bad moment in time, probably, but maybe some people hate me for this, but it was a really special moment for my family and me. So, I was happy that I got the chance to at least be out there."

Wagner said he's focused on getting fully recovered from last season's injuries. Then he'll turn to training with eyes on avoiding injuries next season.

"It's rehabbing first of all, the injuries that I did have, and then sort of addressing some of the patterns, maybe why injuries keep coming up," Wagner said. "That's the goal: that you're not hurt at all, and not just treating symptoms when they come up, but taking preventive measures. I have a great amount of time now in the summer to do some of that."

Wagner said that he and his teammates are excited about new head coach Sean Sweeney. The Magic wing also said that the team needs to build on the lessons they've learned in the last three playoff appearances to advance further in the playoffs next year.