With the New York Knicks claiming their first championship in 53 years, the party continues in the city and the NBA offseason has officially arrived.
Unofficially, business has been open for months, and with the NBA draft just days away, talks are intensifying across the league.
Here are the biggest storylines already shaping the summer transaction window:
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What's the holdup with this Giannis trade?
What in the world is taking so long? The Milwaukee Bucks and the Miami Heat have been in talks for months. Giannis Antetokounmpo has for some time been open to signing a contract extension in Miami, which has furthered the Heat's desire to find a pathway to a trade.
Here's the issue: The Bucks seem to not be in love with the Heat's offer(s) and continue to discuss trade packages with other teams, team sources say. That said, Miami has been able to improve what it can offer since the trade deadline and can send a package headlined by the No. 13 pick in next week's draft plus various rotation players, namely Wisconsin native Tyler Herro, and prospects.
In the end, the Bucks might have to take it if they are resigned to trading their franchise icon. But they also know there's no bonus for speed; they're well aware this move could define the next decade in Milwaukee.
The Boston Celtics are also on Antetokounmpo's list. He'd be willing to extend his contract if he were traded there too, league sources say. The Celtics typically don't get involved in situations in which they have to be involved with player agents alongside the teams.
Antetokounmpo and his representation have definitely tried to have a seat at the table during this process -- a fact that makes the Celtics uncomfortable.
The Celtics keep things quiet. Their big moves, from the then-stunning hiring of Brad Stevens 13 years ago to the Jrue Holiday trade last summer, typically don't leak. They did have some player/team involvement when they made the deal to get Kristaps Porzingis in 2023, so it's not impossible, but that was an outlier.
There are two other stumbling blocks for a Celtics deal:
1. It would potentially require the team to break up the successful duo of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. Regardless of how quiet a team keeps its talks, there's always fallout with the players involved in them.