The Bounce: Giannis goes to the Heat for a haul. Plus, our mock draft for tonight

The Athletic has live coverage of the 2026 NBA Draft, including the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade.

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Yesterday, I said to expect the Giannis trade to happen during my flight. Just to close that loop, the news of the trade broke as we were landing in Chicago. Sometimes, this stuff is so predictable. By the way, it’s Draft Day!

Heat is on

Giannis takes his talents to South Beach

Damian Lillard tore his left Achilles tendon on April 27, 2025. In the aftermath of that, the basketball world wondered how the Milwaukee Bucks could continue to make Giannis Antetokounmpo happy enough to want to stay. After committing $22.5 million of dead cap money for five years just so they could also add Myles Turner as a Band-Aid, the Bucks went 32-50 last season. They didn’t even come close to making the Play-In, and the trade rumors surrounding Giannis got weird.

After Giannis beat around the bush about maybe the Bucks no longer wanting him and avoided being the bad guy by requesting a trade, Milwaukee finally decided to move on the night before the NBA Draft. Late last night, the Bucks traded their 31-year-old superstar to the Miami Heat in a package that involves six players, three first-round picks, a pick swap and a second-rounder.

Giannis is headed to Miami. What will be his legacy in Milwaukee?

Eric Nehm and Johnny Sweet

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Here is the deal, for now. It could be expanded with more teams getting involved before July 6:

Miami receives: Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis
Milwaukee receives Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakučionis, 13th pick in 2026, 2030 pick swap, 2031 first, 2033 first and a 2033 second

First and foremost, here are my grades for the trade so far. I have some questions following the news of this deal. Let’s answer them together.

What happens with Thanasis (Ha! Beat you to it!)? Wouldn’t you know it? Bounce specter Thanasis Antetokounmpo is a free agent. So the Heat could sign him if Giannis requests and they have a roster spot open for him.

Are the Heat automatically contenders in the East? No, they are not. The Heat have Giannis and Bam Adebayo. They have Portis, Nikola Jović, Andrew Wiggins and Davion Mitchell. Maybe you’re a fan of Dru Smith, Pelle Larsson and Myron Gardner as role players. But the Heat very much need to fill out this roster with quality role players. They need to find some shooting. They need to find playmaking guards. Perimeter scoring will be at a premium. Although, let’s remember that a defense starting with Bam, Giannis, Mitchell and Erik Spoelstra coaching it will immediately be elite. They need some offense, though.

How do the Heat fill out this roster? They could re-sign Norman Powell and Simone Fontecchio. Powell will be a bit expensive, although I’m not sure how robust the market is for him. The Heat can probably get him on a two-year deal? That doesn’t overcommit anything financially. Fontecchio provides some shooting on the wing, but he isn’t more than like an eighth or ninth man. Could they convince someone like Coby White or Collin Sexton to delay their paydays but come to the Heat for a year or two? What about someone like Anfernee Simons? Is Bones Hyland someone you trust as your backup point guard? Lots of questions for Miami to answer.

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Is this the right move for the Bucks? I think it’s the best overall trade package they could get. The alternative was Jaylen Brown and picks from Boston, and you’d have to pay Brown an extension of $140 million-plus over just two years. With this deal, they get an All-Star caliber guard (Herro), an excellent big man prospect (Ware), a really good role player (Jaquez) and a point guard prospect (Jakučionis). The key to this deal is two-fold. 1) Can they flip Herro for more assets? 2) Praying for the downfall of the Heat in 2030, 2031 and 2033 is a pretty good calculated risk.

Do you expect this deal to expand? I do, and that’s without any reporting on my end. There were rumors and reports of Detroit’s interest in Herro if more teams are involved. Just to move some contracts or picks around, I’d expect at least one or two more squads to get involved.

Do the Celtics have any issues with Brown since he was rumored to move? Of course, they do. He was already having a weird offseason with his streaming. Yesterday, he was on Twitch and said the people who want him gone or are feeding him negativity are turning him into a monster. What? Ultimately, the Celtics can smooth this over with that aforementioned extension. As long as Brown continues to get along with his teammates and Boston can build the roster with Jayson Tatum healthy again, it should be fine. But this is not just some smooth, “water under the bridge” type of fallout.

I cannot recommend enough Eric Nehm writing about what it was like to cover Giannis during his legendary run in Milwaukee.
Oh, by the way, Julius Randle was traded to Brooklyn in a Minnesota salary dump that landed Nic Claxton in Chicago. I graded the trade for all three teams.
And the Wolves are expected to re-sign Ayo Dosunmu to a five-year, $112 million deal with this newfound flexibility. The last year is a player option.

OK, after a few links, it’s time for The Bounce mock draft

The last 24

📚 To the pros! The Mavericks have hired Dusty May away from Michigan. He’s Cooper Flagg’s new coach.

💰 Big contract. Some people thought Trae Young might struggle to find a long-term, big deal. He’s re-signing with the Wiz for $212 million over four years.

🤝 New revenue? The players’ union has created a new brand for its name, image and likeness. Will PLYRS UNTD be a real brand for them?

👋 New record. Brittney Griner blocked her 878th career shot. She’s the WNBA’s all-time leader now.

Stream the NBA on Fubo (try it for free!) and catch out-of-market games on League Pass.

Let’s mock

The first round of the draft is tonight, and it feels like the right time to drop an official mock for this newsletter. Some of this will be off what’s rumored out there. Some of this will be what I think should happen. Some of this is me reading Sam Vecenie and John Hollinger and just nodding.

We’re going to group sections of picks together instead of hitting commentary on every single pick. Reminder, the draft begins at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN. Let’s have some fun!

1. Wizards: AJ Dybantsa | W | BYU

2. Jazz: Darryn Peterson | G | Kansas

3. Grizzlies: Cameron Boozer | F | Duke

4. Bulls: Caleb Wilson | F | UNC

I expect the top four picks to go chalk. The Wizards might surprise people and take Peterson first. The Jazz would certainly love it to end up with Dybantsa for their giant lineups they’re putting together. But I don’t think the Wiz can pass on Dybantsa. Boozer and Wilson feel like locks for the next two picks.

Caleb Wilson blends power, explosiveness and coordination in a way other players can’t

Sam Vecenie

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5. Clippers: Brayden Burries | G/W | Arizona

6. Nets: Darius Acuff Jr. | PG | Arkansas

7. Kings: Keaton Wagler | G | Illinois

8. Hawks: Kingston Flemings | PG | Houston

9. Mavericks: Aday Mara | Big | Michigan

10. Bucks: Mikel Brown Jr. | G | Louisville

This is where things could get weird. Some people think Wagler has a promise from the Clippers. There has been reporting and rumors that Burries impressed them at his workout. The Clippers could also trade down. The run of guards should be big here. Acuff is still my favorite guard, and Brown could be the wildcard for Milwaukee’s future. If Burries is off the board, I’d expect the Mavs to go with one of the Michigan big men, thanks to their new coach.

11. Warriors: Yaxel Lendeborg | F | Michigan

12. Thunder: Nate Ament | F| Tennessee

13. Bucks: Koa Peat | F | Arizona

14. Hornets: Hannes Steinbach | Big | Washington

This is where things get tricky. Is Lendeborg the most obvious Warriors pick possible? Is Ament a massive upside guy OKC can turn into a brilliant prospect? The Bucks swing for potential with Peat. Hornets go for a big man with Steinbach

15. Bulls: Christian Anderson | G | Texas Tech

16. Grizzlies: Allen Graves | F| Santa Clara

17. Thunder: Morez Johnson Jr. | F/C | Michigan

18. Hornets: Cameron Carr | W | Baylor

19. Raptors: Chris Cenac Jr. | Big | Houston

20. Spurs: Karim Lopez | W | NZ Breakers

Chicago getting Wilson and Anderson would be a great haul after acquiring Claxton in the trade. Graves feels like everybody’s sleeper pick this week and the right type of young guy for Memphis. Will OKC actually pick at 12 and 17, or will it package those picks to move up in the draft? The Spurs developing Lopez could be unfair.

21. Pistons: Labron Philon Jr. | PG | Alabama

22. 76ers: Dailyn Swain | W | Texas

23. Hawks: Tarris Reed Jr. | Big | Connecticut

24. Knicks: Jayden Quaintance | Big | Kentucky

25. Lakers: Zuby Ejiofor | Big | St. John’s

I love the idea of the Hawks going point guard early and big man here to maximize potential. The Knicks will probably lose Mitchell Robinson, so a healthy Quaintance is needed. The Lakers definitely need a quality big man.

26. Nuggets: Bennett Stirtz | G | Iowa

27. Celtics: Sergio de Larrea | G | Valencia

28. Nets: Meleek Thomas | G | Arkansas

29. Cavaliers: Henri Veesaar | Big | UNC

30. Mavericks: Ebuka Okorie | PG | Stanford

Stirtz probably won’t fall this low, but I don’t see where he’s a lock. Brooklyn got Minnesota’s pick at 28 in the Randle trade. With Dallas going big at No. 9, it makes sense to grab some guard depth here.

Draft prep material:

Vecenie’s latest mock draft!
Hollinger’s Top 75 prospects.
Vecenie’s NBA Draft Guide.
My chaos mock draft.
Our writers’ mock draft.

The Bounce: Giannis goes to the Heat for a haul. Plus, our mock draft for tonight

Heat is on

The last 24

Let’s mock

Analyse

2026-06-25 07:14:36