Every Monday, we catch you up on the happenings in the NBA. This week, the big story is all the trade speculation and intrigue surrounding Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. It’s nothing new for the Bucks, but this time, they may not be able to pull a rabbit out of their hat. We also have a light schedule in the NBA this week as we prepare for the NBA Cup elimination games on Tuesday and Wednesday to determine which teams head to Las Vegas.

But we start with the extended version of the NBA Stock Report, a Monday staple in The Bounce. That’s our free NBA newsletter that you can sign up for and receive every day in your inbox. Let’s rewind!

NBA Stock Report extended

📈 New York Knicks (16-7). The Knicks have won seven of their last eight despite some injuries. During this stretch, OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson and Karl-Anthony Towns have missed time. The Knicks also have had a soft schedule, as they’ve beaten up on the Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets (twice), Milwaukee Bucks and Utah Jazz. They also have two very good wins against the Toronto Raptors and Orlando Magic. New York is up to second in the Eastern Conference and is virtually unbeatable at home (13-1).

Its offense has been out of this world. The comfort in Mike Brown’s new system has been yielding results all season, but it’s at an even more elite level right now. The Knicks have a true shooting percentage over 60 during the last couple of weeks. More importantly, they’re finally finding some comfort in a shifting style of defense. With Anunoby back, they should get even better on the defensive end. Mikal Bridges is playing like a borderline All-Star. This team can still get a lot better.

📉 Chicago Bulls (9-14). The Bulls are spiraling, and there’s not much they can do about it. They just got housed by the Golden State Warriors and have dropped seven straight. It was one thing when they lost four straight road games to begin this streak. Then they dropped three at home. We’re talking losses to Brooklyn, the New Orleans Pelicans, Charlotte, the Indiana Pacers and a Warriors team that was missing Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. The Bulls can’t stop anybody, and they can’t score enough. Aside from cool stat lines for Josh Giddey, there isn’t any substance in what Chicago is trying to do. It’s a stark contrast from the first two weeks of the season.

📈 Boston Celtics (15-9). The Celtics beat the Raptors on Sunday to run their win streak to five straight. They’ve also won 10 of their last 12 and look a lot like the Celtics we’re used to seeing, even though they gutted the core and Jayson Tatum is still in street clothes. They’re mostly doing this with offense right now. They have had the best offense in basketball for nearly the last month, putting up a ridiculous 128.9 points per 100 possessions. Just to put that into context, their offensive rating was 122.2 when they won the championship in 2024. Their defense has been slightly below average, but the offense is so good that it doesn’t matter.

Jaylen Brown, Payton Pritchard and Derrick White have become a three-headed monster. They just keep pelting you with quality shots and dribble penetration. Neemias Queta has been excellent as pretty much their only big man. And Anfernee Simons has found his footing with scoring and shooting the ball from deep. Boston is making 43.6 percent of its 3-pointers over this 12-game stretch.

📉 Cleveland Cavaliers (14-11). I mean no offense when I say this, but Jarrett Allen and Max Strus can’t be this important to this team’s success. The Cavs are nowhere close to what we saw a year ago, and that was further driven home by their home loss to the Warriors on Saturday night. Normally, losing to the Warriors wouldn’t be a bad mark on your résumé, but the Dubs were missing Curry, Green and Jimmy Butler. Pat Spencer took them down, and it should have been a wake-up call for Cleveland.

Yes, they’ve missed some guys, but Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley look excellent. This team has lost five out of its last seven, though. Its offense and defense are pretty middle-of-the-road during this bad stretch, so it’s not like the Cavs have fallen off a cliff in that respect. But they’re 0-5 in clutch games during this stretch, and their defense is getting demolished in tight games. The attention to detail has not been there, and you have to wonder if Kenny Atkinson’s message is even getting through.

📈 Jalen Johnson. The Atlanta Hawks’ forward is playing out of his mind. If he’s not a first-time All-Star this season, then something is very wrong with the selection process. It took him a few games after Trae Young went down with his knee injury, but Johnson has found his groove as the primary initiator for the Hawks. Over his last 14 games, Johnson is averaging 25.0 points, 11.6 rebounds, 9.6 assists and 1.7 steals with 51.3/44.9/79.8 shooting splits. The Hawks are 9-5 in that time.

During this 14-game stretch, the Hawks have outscored opponents by 9.2 points per 100 possessions with Johnson on the court. When he’s on the bench? They’re getting smoked by 16.2 points per 100 possessions. He’s having the type of impact you’d hope someone like Young would have, and it should raise some questions for the Hawks’ front office about what the makeup of their team should be. Maybe Johnson isn’t a franchise starter like many still assume Young can be. But this team has played better without its “best player.” It doesn’t have to mean you trade the point guard, but the Hawks can’t go back to the mediocre fare we saw the last few years once Young is back.

📉 Miami Heat (14-10). After winning six straight, the Heat have lost four of their last five. Maybe the most concerning loss was the latest one, a home game to the Sacramento Kings by 16 points. And it was worse than that for much of the game. So is there something wrong with the Heat, or have they just hit a tough spot? We’ve seen some slippage on both ends of the floor for the Heat. In their first 18 games, they had an offensive rating of 116.0 (12th) and a defensive rating of 110.6 (fourth). During their last seven games (3-4), their offense is down to 112.2 (21st) and their defense is 113.5 (12th).

Some of this could be the reintegration of Tyler Herro into the lineup. The Heat were playing awesome, high-paced basketball without him, and he’s still trying to find his rhythm. They’re also trying to find their rhythm with him. Some of this is guys in and out of the lineup. And some of it is just that they lost coin flip games to Detroit and Orlando. This team needs to find a way to score when Norman Powell isn’t in the game. The offense has dropped over 20 points per 100 possessions in the last few games when he hits the bench.

📈 Minnesota Timberwolves (15-8). The Wolves are a tricky one, because technically they are on the way up. Not only did they break the seal against non-losing teams for the first time this season with back-to-back wins over Boston and San Antonio, but they also have won five straight. Granted, the last three games were against the Pelicans (twice) and the LA Clippers. And all three of those wins were far closer than they should have been for a team trying to get back to a third straight conference finals. Still, those wins helped them work on some end-of-game execution stuff they desperately need to iron out. Minnesota co-owns (with Boston) the longest non-Oklahoma City Thunder winning streak in the NBA right now.

📉 LA Clippers (6-18). There was a brief glimmer after the Clippers sent Chris Paul home unceremoniously. They played the Hawks the next game and won pretty easily. Blew them out by 23. Then … reality reminded them they’re an awful team this season. They distracted themselves a little bit after the loss to Minnesota on Saturday night with James Harden passing Carmelo Anthony for 10th on the all-time scoring list. But the Clippers can’t score right now. They managed just 98 points in a loss to Memphis and then 106 in a loss in Minnesota. They get into clutch situations and they can’t score or defend. Tough recipe for success.

The Big Story: Where will Giannis play next?

It was a chaotic week for the Bucks. First, we had the report that Antetokounmpo and his representation were talking with the team about his future. Our Eric Nehm and Sam Amick noted that team sources downplayed that situation and indicated that there had been no formal trade request, which Doc Rivers stressed before Wednesday’s game. Then, immediately after Giannis went down with a lower leg injury and after some possible fear of an Achilles injury, we found out he’s “only” out for two to four weeks. Rivers said it’s probably closer to four weeks, considering calf injuries are so dangerous to players these days.

A lot of people around the league are wondering if Giannis has played his final game for the Bucks. Some social media posts are throwing out the conspiracy that Giannis is utilizing his injury downtime to work the trade angle even more without the distraction of games. And a lot of people are working trade machines to see if their favorite team can bring in the two-time MVP.

Things probably aren’t that dramatic, but the Bucks are up against a wall they can’t push away from. In the past, they’ve used pressure from Giannis or the conversation around his long-term place with Milwaukee as a way to galvanize some moves. The Bucks traded for Jrue Holiday in 2020, which led to their 2021 championship. Questions and concerns about winning another one led to acquiring Damian Lillard in 2023. Then, after Lillard tore his Achilles in April, the Bucks went the extreme route of waiving and stretching his contract to bring in Myles Turner in a desperate attempt to show Giannis they’re still willing to move mountains for him.

This time does feel different. The Bucks don’t have any trade assets to make their roster better. That well has been tapped bone dry. They don’t have control of their picks through 2030. The future has been mortgaged, and they’d be foolish to trade away their picks in 2031 or 2032, when Giannis, who turned 31 on Saturday, will likely be on enough of a decline to not guarantee contention even with a star teammate. The best players they can dangle in a trade are … Turner? Kevin Porter Jr.? Ryan Rollins?

Whether Giannis decides to stick it out this season or does, in fact, demand a move, it feels like this thing is coming to an end. Everybody will assume the Knicks as a destination. What about Atlanta throwing Young and picks into the fray? What about the Spurs trying to get aggressive to pair him with Victor Wembanyama? What about Chicago finally trying to become a serious franchise again, or literally any other team out there hoping to legitimize the next few years? We’ve seen incredible bidding wars in the past, but this won’t be a surprise haul like Dallas bungling the Luka Dončić situation. This should be historic.

And if OKC wants in on this, there’s nobody that could match its best offers.

The Knicks and Raptors will battle it out for a spot in Las Vegas on Tuesday night. (Wendell Cruz / Imagn Images)

The Week Ahead: NBA Cup Elimination Week

Wondering why the schedule is so light this week? That’s because we’ve got elimination games for the NBA Cup! Eight teams (four in each conference) are vying on Tuesday and Wednesday for a free trip to Las Vegas. There, they’d get a chance to win and play an extra game this season in order to win $500,000 per player and take up the NBA Cup. We have two intriguing East matchups on Tuesday. We have two intriguing West matchups on Wednesday. And the rest of the league is kind of just chilling. Let’s dive into what to expect in these four games, and, of course, make some predictions.

Miami Heat at Orlando Magic, Tuesday

The Magic are 2-0 against the Heat this season, with a four-point win on opening night and a one-point win this past Friday. If you’re going to drink the Heat Kool-Aid on this one, it’s fun to assume Erik Spoelstra didn’t give away any of his upcoming strategy for this tournament game. It’s something Spo would do with possible playoff opponents at the end of the regular season, so we can assume he treats this the same way.

• Key injuries: Tyler Herro, Pelle Larsson and Davion Mitchell are banged up but could play for Miami. The Magic just lost Franz Wagner (knee) for a while on Sunday, but we’ll know more about his injury before that game.

• Key matchup: Bam Adebayo on Paolo Banchero. With Wagner out, the offense is going to run through Banchero quite a bit. That means the ball can get stuck. If Adebayo avoids foul trouble, we could see a real traffic jam on offense for Orlando.

• What the Heat must do: Hit the defensive boards. They’re one of the worst in the league at defensive rebounding, and Orlando is pretty good on the offensive boards.

• What the Magic must do: Force turnovers. They’re really good at it. Miami is good at taking care of the ball. Orlando likely can’t hang with Miami on the 3-point line, so it has to manufacture a variance elsewhere.

Prediction: Give me Spo finding something here to keep Miami rolling.

New York Knicks at Toronto Raptors, Tuesday

The Knicks are 1-0 against the Raptors, and that game happened a little over a week ago. New York won 116-94, and it’s fun to wonder if Toronto was holding back, knowing its elimination matchup was coming up. Or maybe it just got beaten down?

•Key injuries: Landry Shamet (shoulder) is out for New York, and Towns (calf) may play. RJ Barrett (knee) could miss this one for Toronto.

• Key matchup: Anunoby and Bridges against Scottie Barnes and Brandon Ingram. If the Anunoby-Bridges combo can slow down Toronto’s wings, the Knicks should win this game.

• What the Knicks must do: Light up the 3-point line. The Raptors are the best in the league at preventing 3-point makes, while the Knicks shoot one of the highest percentages from deep.

• What the Raptors must do: Keep the Knicks, specifically Robinson, off the offensive boards. If Toronto can limit New York to one shot on possessions, it can turn up the defense and create some quick strike moments.

Prediction: Raptors continue to shock the world.

Phoenix Suns at OKC Thunder, Wednesday

We just saw the Suns and Thunder play at the end of group play, but an Oklahoma City win did not keep Phoenix from grabbing the wild card. The Suns lost by just four, but Devin Booker played in that game.

• Key injuries: Booker is out with a groin injury for Phoenix. Jalen Green is still out with a hamstring injury. Isaiah Hartenstein’s ankle should still keep him out for OKC.

• Key matchup: Dillon Brooks against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

• What the Suns must do: Try some holy water, a crucifix, an old priest and a young priest. Seriously, maybe disrupting with deflections and forcing turnovers, plus hammering OKC on the boards, can create a fighting chance here.

• What the Thunder must do: Force turnovers and be overwhelming. Phoenix wasn’t great with turnovers when Booker was healthy. It’ll be even worse now.

Prediction: Why would anybody bet against OKC right now?

San Antonio Spurs at Los Angeles Lakers, Wednesday

The Lakers just barely managed a win over the Spurs in their only matchup this season. It was completely different, though. Victor Wembanyama played. De’Aaron Fox, Austin Reaves and LeBron James did not.

• Key injuries: James and Marcus Smart are both battling back injuries for L.A., but they could still play. Wemby is still probably out for the Spurs unless they want to surprise us.

• Key matchup: The bevy of wing defenders for San Antonio against Dončić and Reaves.

• What the Spurs must do: Force turnovers and cut off the paint. L.A. is really good at getting shots inside and really bad at taking care of the ball.

• What the Lakers must do: Get to the free-throw line. They’re the best in the league at it, and the Spurs are really good at keeping opponents off the line. They have to force contact and get the Spurs into foul trouble.

Prediction: Unless Wemby surprises us and plays, I’ll take Luka magic right now.