Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks are on the verge of divorce. Antetokounmpo still has a chance to return to Milwaukee; However, the organization reportedly wants a solution before the 2026 NBA Draft. In a scenario where the NBA wants to trade the superstar from the Bucks, he would likely have a new home for the 2026-27 NBA season

This seems like a real possibility, so what will it really take for Antetokounmpo to land in Miami? Here’s what needs to happen for the Miami Heat.

Giannis Antetokounmpo should request a trade with Miami as a destination

It all starts with Antetokounmpo. If the Heat want to make one of their best moves in the last 16 years, the Bucks forward will have to request a trade this summer. In fact, Antetokounmpo would need to list Miami as one of his preferred trade destinations to do so.

There will be a long list of teams looking to acquire Antetokounmpo during the 2026 NBA offseason, so the Heat need to add him. This doesn’t mean Antetokounmpo has to say it’s “Miami and only Miami,” but an organization will only trade for him with the assurance that it will end well.

For Antetokounmpo to leave Milwaukee, he’ll need a landing spot that makes him happy. The Heat are one of those destinations, while other teams like the New York Knicks also make sense. Either way, Miami needs Antetokounmpo to keep an eye on the organization this summer.

If so, the onus falls on Pat Riley and the Heat front office to ultimately bring another superstar to Miami.

The Miami Heat absolutely need to trade for Antetokounmpo

One of the most popular stories about Miami over the years has been its reluctance to include certain players in potential trades. Several players have been involved in trade rumors since arriving in Miami, but the team has taken them out of the conversation to acquire difference makers. This has to be changed now.

The Heat should absolutely trade for Antetokounmpo this summer. Bam Adebayo should really be the only player over the limit; However, everyone else needs to be at the table. This includes Tyler Herro and Kyle Ware, as both players would be interesting for Milwaukee in the post-Antetokounmpo era.

Miami would also include all of its draft selections in this scenario. Needless to say, the Heat will have to give up most, if not all, of their assets. When a player like Antetokounmpo is on the market, this is the most likely outcome for a team looking to make an NBA Finals appearance.

The Heat will build their team around Adebayo and Antetokounmpo, which should be enough to get them back into contention if everyone stays healthy. The only issue is that many other NBA organizations will feel the same way. Antetokounmpo will put them over the top.

So, if Miami is Antetokounmpo’s preferred destination, it’s time for Riley and the front office to push all of their chips into the middle of the table.

Read more: Miami’s summer is over – why big off-season changes are coming

Austin Konensky is a writer at SportsNut, covering the NHL, MLB, NFL, NBA and more. His work can also…more about Austin Konensky

In a surprising development, the 8th-seeded Orlando Magic continued their stellar performance to take a 2-1 series lead against the No. 1-seeded Detroit Pistons. The Magic got an excellent performance from Paolo Banchero with a near triple-double. The Pistons—who had never really been challenged in the Eastern Conference all year—were now firmly on their heels.

Claiming the 12th and 20th overall picks in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys will emerge from Thursday as a better team. After allowing the most points in the NFL in 2025, many expect the Cowboys to turn their attention to defense with one or possibly both selections.

Of course, trading for a top prospect could change those plans. Still, given how well the Cowboys have drafted, they’d probably prefer to have two selections in the first round. The other interesting thing is that the Cowboys often target a player that some analysts believe is a reach, a surprise or even a shocking selection.

Recently, when Essential Sports’ NFL insider Tony Pauline was asked which teams and/or players could lead to a “shocking” selection in the first round of the draft, he didn’t hesitate to name the Cowboys.

As mentioned, the Cowboys have a recent history of making surprise picks in the first round. One could argue they’ve done this in each of the last four drafts, selecting Tyler Booker, Tyler Guyton, Mazzie Smith and Tyler Smith.

If they select someone like Johnson or Rodriguez, especially at age 20, both would qualify as surprise picks, as both players are viewed as more likely to come off the board on the first, if not the second, day of the NFL Draft.

RELATED: Dallas Cowboys Draft Rumors: Trade Update + Key Prospect Watch

Dedicated NFL copywriter/editor. My work has been found on SportsNut, Sports Illustrated, Sporting News, MSN, Yahoo, and Minnesota Sports… More about Andrew Buller-Russ

The Oklahoma City Thunder were missing several key guys heading into another high-intensity contest against the Denver Nuggets on Monday night. They did not include Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso, to name a few. But as long as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is on the court, the Thunder are almost impossible to stop.

Try as the Nuggets might, Gilgeous-Alexander may just have his numbers. Despite Nikola Jokic’s best efforts to save the Nuggets from dead, the Thunder ultimately won 129-126, thanks to Bonkers Game-Winning Stepback Triple From the current MVP.

With 8.5 seconds left in the game, Gilgeous-Alexander received the ball from Ajay Mitchell out of bounds. The reigning MVP had Spencer Jones draped over him, but it didn’t matter. Gilgeous-Alexander then stepped on Jones before stopping on a dime and then pulled to his right for a tough game-winning triple from which the Nuggets could not come back.

sga for the win

mvp momentpic.twitter.com/SXn8Oun6Ck

– Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) 10 March 2026

There were about two seconds left on the clock after Gilgeous-Alexander made a three, but the Nuggets no longer had any timeouts. As a result, Aaron Gordon had to throw a layup from approximately 90 feet, which missed the left side of the rim.

This game once again had playoff intensity written all over it, and it will be a treat for neutral observers to see these two heavyweights lose once again in the postseason stage.

Thunder remain the team to beat thanks to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Gilgeous-Alexander has a lot of critics due to being an alleged free-throw merchant. But make no mistake, he is the best pure scorer in the NBA. He can reach his location at will, and remains efficient no matter who guards him. His entire life has been consistent, as he once said, and it shows: He has now scored 20 points or more in 126 consecutive games.

In the win over the Nuggets, Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points, nine rebounds and 15 assists in a complete destruction of the Thunder’s biggest rival.