Sports
Should the Bucks Trade Giannis Antetokounmpo? Milwaukee Faces Franchise-Altering Decision
After a third consecutive first-round playoff loss, the Milwaukee Bucks are faced with one huge question — to keep or trade Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The future of the two-time MVP, arguably the most dominant player in the league, is the hottest topic on the nonstop NBA rumor mill, although Antetokounmpo has not said he wants to be traded.
Antetokounmpo, now 30, is signed for two more years, with a player option for 2027-28. But the situation is compounded by an aging roster and the status of star guard Damian Lillard, who suffered a torn Achilles in the playoffs and is expected to miss all or most of next season.
Although revered by the fan base and the local community, there is both historic and recent precedent for the possibility of trading Antetokounmpo, who averaged 30.4 points and 9.7 rebounds per game, shooting 60.1%.
In February, Dallas traded five-time All-Star Luka Doncic, the cornerstone of the franchise, to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for veteran center Anthony Davis. The move paired the 25-year-old Doncic with LeBron James, but the Lakers were ousted in the first round of the playoffs by Minnesota.
On the local level, the Bucks in 1975 traded all-time great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Walt Bellamy to the Lakers for Junior Bridgeman, Elmore Smith, Brian Winters and David Myers.
In 1971, Abdul-Jabbar led the Bucks to the NBA championship. Despite decades of success, numerous All-Star players and deep playoff runs, it was the Bucks’ only championship until Antetokounmpo led them to the title in 2021.
In 2013, the Bucks used the 15th overall pick on a skinny, 6-foot-9 club player from Athens, Greece. Although the 18-year-old Antetokounmpo had been on the radar of NBA scouts, those covering the draft that night scrambled to find any information beyond a one-page photocopied handout.
Antetokounmpo learned on the job with 24.6 minutes per game his rookie season, averaging 6.8 points and 4.4 rebounds, shooting 41.4%. Now a muscular 6-11, 243 pounds, he has averaged more than 30 points per game each of the last three seasons. In the recent first-round loss to Indiana, Antetokounmpo averaged 33.0 points and 15.4 rebounds over five games.
The Bucks won the 2021 title under coach Mike Budenholzer behind Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and guard Jrue Holiday, acquired prior to that season. The Bucks lost in the conference semifinals the following year, then the first round each of the last three seasons.
Budenholzer was fired after 2023 when the top-seeded Bucks lost to No. 8 seed Miami in the first round. He was replaced by Adrian Griffin, who was surprisingly fired halfway through his first season and replaced by veteran coach Doc Rivers.
The Bucks acquired future Hall of Famer Lillard from Portland prior to the 2023-24 season in a three-way deal that eventually sent Holiday, a multiple All-NBA Defensive Team selection, on to Boston, which won the NBA title.
The pairing of Antetokounmpo and Lillard obviously did not produce championship results, and Lillard’s injury makes the future even more uncertain. The Bucks traded the oft-injured Middleton in February in a multi-team deal that brought them Kyle Kuzma, who averaged 14.8 points during the regular season, but just 5.8 in 20 minutes per game in the playoff loss to the Pacers.
Antetokounmpo and Lillard are each slated to make $54 million next season, and Kuzma $22 million.
The rest of the roster is riddled with question marks. Veteran center Brook Lopez is 37 and an unrestricted free agent. Sixth man Bobby Portis, a fan favorite, was suspended in February for 25 games because of a violation of the NBA’s drug policy involving a pain medication. He is in the player option year of his contract.
Veterans Gary Trent Jr. and Taurean Prince also are unrestricted free agents.
Due to the Lillard trade and others, the Bucks have limited draft options as well, and don’t control their own first-round pick until 2031.
The Bucks don’t have a first-round pick in the upcoming draft as part of acquiring Holiday, which also gives New Orleans the right to swap first-round position in 2026. The same trade cost the Bucks their first-round pick in 2027.
Both Portland and Washington have first-round swap options in 2028, and the Bucks have no first-round pick in 2029 because of the Lillard deal. Portland has another swap option in 2030.
Bucks general manager Jon Horst received a multiyear contract extension in April. He has one huge decision to make.
Sports
Plenty at stake as No. 8 Purdue sets sights on Ohio State
Feb 26, 2026; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Purdue Boilermakers guard Braden Smith (3) looks at a referee during the first half of a game against the Michigan State Spartans at Mackey Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jacob Musselman-Imagn Images While No. 8 Purdue and Ohio State are coming off losses, they still have goals in front of them when they convene on Sunday in Columbus, Ohio.
The Boilermakers (22-6, 12-5 Big Ten) have their eyes on a top-four finish going into the conference tournament. However, they find themselves in fifth place after a 76-74 home loss to No. 13 Michigan State on Thursday.
Nebraska and Michigan State are tied for second with 13-4 conference records with Illinois (13-5) a half-game back. The top four teams receive triple byes into the tourney.
“Most disappointing for us is you’re trying to jockey for that triple bye. Now you’re playing fewer games,” Purdue coach Matt Painter said. “Last year was the first time in 10 years that we didn’t get there.
“That’s important leading up to the NCAA Tournament because you want to be a little more pristine, like three games in three days instead of four games in four days. It’s not the end of the world but that’s what you’re jockeying for.”
Purdue likely will need to win out beginning with its game versus the Buckeyes (17-11, 9-8 Big Ten) who are in a more dire situation. While Painter can talk about the NCAA Tournament with certainty, Ohio State is wobbling on the bubble.
A 74-57 setback at Iowa on Wednesday marked the first time the Buckeyes lost two straight games this season. It also left them with a 1-10 record against Quad 1 opponents.
Ohio State is in ninth place in the Big Ten, one game back of Iowa (10-7) for the double bye which goes to teams seeded five through eight.
In order for the Buckeyes to upset Purdue, they must get a full team effort. Playing without center Christoph Tilly (ankle) against Iowa — his status for Sunday’s game is unknown — the Buckeyes did not get much out of Bruce Thornton.
Thornton did not score in the first half, during which Ohio State found itself trailing 37-23 at intermission. His first points came with just over 12 minutes left in the game. He had 10 points, half his season average.
“He’s got to be aggressive, stay aggressive,” Ohio State coach Jake Diebler said. “We moved him around a little bit. I thought he passed up some opportunities in the first half to attack. Did a much better job getting the ball in the paint in the second half.”
The Buckeyes are looking for consistency but Diebler said that has been difficult because players have been in and out of the lineup due to injuries.
“We’ve got a little time now to have some great prep heading into our next game and hopefully we can get healthier and get some time to practice some of these lineups that we’re having to play,” he said.
Purdue’s Braden Smith, who has totaled 1,004 assists, needs four more to pass Long Island’s Jason Brickman for fourth on the NCAA all-time list.
“(Smith’s) a fabulous player. He’s great,” Painter said. “He’s put a lot of time into it and sacrificed a lot. Basketball’s an important piece in his life. I’m honored to coach him and he’s been great for us, fabulous, and done a lot for this university.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Austin looks to continue successful history against D.C. United
Feb 21, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; DC United forward Tai Baribo (9) in action against the Philadelphia Union at Audi Field. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images Austin FC will look to continue their successful history against D.C. United and break into the win column when the sides square off on Sunday afternoon in Austin, Texas.
The Verde (0-0-1, 1 point) kicked off the 2026 season with a 2-2 draw at home with Minnesota United on Feb. 21. Austin got goals from Brendan Hines-Ike and Myrto Uzuni and an assist from their flash offseason signing Facundo Torres but gave up the tying goal in the 90th minute and settled for spitting the points.
“We just have played one game and I think we see a team already that is more vertical, that is more going forward,” Austin coach Nico Estevez said Thursday. “We don’t want to lose much time on building if it’s clear that we can be vertical, but we also use the building up to create the spaces in between the lines.
“We want to be a team that is fun to watch and a team that goes forward and wants to score goals, and this is the work that we keep doing.”
The Verde announced Friday that they have acquired forward Christian Ramirez from MLS waivers. Ramirez played last season with the LA Galaxy and started 10 of 25 games, scoring four goals and adding an assist.
Austin has won each of its three all-time meetings with D.C. United, most recently a 4-2 victory last season in the nation’s capital.
D.C. United began their campaign with a 1-0 win at home against the Philadelphia Union, with the game’s lone goal scored by Tai Baribo in the 23rd minute. Baribo signed with the Black and Red in the offseason after he played 2025 with the Union, which added insult to injury in the Week 1 victory.
D.C. coach Rene Weiler lauded his new scoring threat after the win.
“As a striker, you have to be decisive and he scored the goal, it was the decisive goal, so he did his job,” Weiler said. “It’s uncomfortable to play against him, so, it helps us a lot.”
Sean Johnson was sharp in his first competitive start in goal for D.C. United, producing three saves to earn a clean sheet, the 113th of his MLS career.
D.C. United finished last in the Eastern Conference in 2025 but are already off to a better start.
“We want to be unpredictable, so we played some diagonal balls and then we played some long balls,” Weiler said. “So that is an option to open the field.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Seattle game breaks U.S. arena attendance record for women's hockey
Mar 27, 2023; Seattle, WA, USA; A general overall view of the Space Needle and Climate Pledge Arena at Seattle Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images A sold-out crowd of 17,335 fans at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena broke the U.S. attendance record for a women’s hockey game on Friday night.
In the first game back from the Olympic break for both PWHL teams, the host Seattle Torrent fell 5-2 to the Toronto Sceptres.
The Torrent played without captain Hilary Knight, who led the U.S. women’s team to a gold medal in the Milan Cortina Olympics. She was placed on long-term injured reserve due to a lower-body injury she suffered during the Games.
The previous record of 17,228 fans came on Jan. 18 when the Montreal Victoire faced the New York Sirens at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.
The Torrent also broke their own attendance mark, set when 16,014 fans filled the Seattle arena for the expansion club’s inaugural home opener on Nov. 28, 2025.
Overall attendance across the PWHL for the league’s third season was up 17 percent through 61 games at the Milan Cortina Olympics break, according to the league.
–Field Level Media
Survivor's Decline Halted By Season 50 Premiere's Return To Greatness
Polymarket saw $529M traded on bets tied to bombing of Iran
