Injury Notes: F. Wagner, Okongwu, Giddey, Kawamura, T. Johnson
Franz Wagner doesn’t appear close to returning from the left ankle injury that has kept him on the sidelines for 20 of the Magic‘s past 22 games, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel. The fifth-year forward was limited to riding a stationary bike during Wednesday’s shootaround in Miami and was scheduled to do standstill shooting after his teammates left the court.
Wagner didn’t experience a setback after he returned for a pair of games earlier this month, according to Beede, who hears the 24-year-old likely hasn’t undergone recent imaging on the ankle. Instead, the soreness is viewed as a lingering effect of the original high ankle sprain he sustained on December 7.
The 24-year-old admitted this week he probably returned too early when he played a pair of contests in Europe against the Grizzlies, the first of which was the NBA’s first-ever regular season game in his home country of Germany. The game took place in Berlin, his home town.
“Definitely not where I want it to be to play, and to play consistently,” Wagner said Wednesday, per Beede. “It’s consistently (that) is the big thing. Obviously I really wanted to play in Berlin but probably wasn’t ready for that yet. So, yeah, tough situation just looking back but definitely still got a little bit to go.”
Wagner explained that he experienced the soreness after the second game in London, when he played 26 minutes in a loss, and continued to feel it days later, Beede notes. He will miss his fifth straight game on Friday and he’s not sure when he’ll be able to return.
“I’m learning that it’s one of those things that can linger a little bit,” Wagner said. “So, I just want to make sure that once I get back, I’m really back, and don’t have to sit out a game here and feel good again. I want to be good for the rest of the year.”
We have more injury-related updates from around the NBA:
- Hawks big man Onyeka Okongwu lost a couple of teeth when he was elbowed in the face by Jaylen Brown in the fourth quarter of Wednesday’s victory over Boston, relays Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. Brown received a flagrant 1 foul for the play, though he said it wasn’t intentional. “Just being aggressive like I always am,” Brown told reporters. “Just a basketball play. It’s unfortunate. Okongwu is a good player. I know from my own experiences with a fractured face and chipped teeth, that (stuff) is a hassle. It wasn’t intentional, and I know it’s going to be a long day at the dentist tomorrow, so hopefully he has a good recovery.” Okongwu underwent a successful dental procedure in Atlanta on Thursday morning, per the Hawks (Twitter link). He was ruled out of Thursday’s loss to Houston and is considered day-to-day moving forward.
- Bulls guard Josh Giddey, who missed about three weeks due to a left hamstring strain before returning last week, experienced tightness in that hamstring in Wednesday’s loss at Indiana and was held out of Thursday’s loss to Miami, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. The original plan was for Giddey to play both ends of the back-to-back before the tightness occurred. “Because of the past injury they want to make sure they can clear the tightness up because I think they worry about it going from one thing to the next,” head coach Billy Donovan said. “I don’t know when he’ll return. There was no strain or a setback, anything like that. It’s just a matter of how long it will take them to remove the tightness where he could just play without it.”
- Second-year point guard Yuki Kawamura, whom the Bulls waived in October but re-signed to a two-way deal earlier this month, was grateful to be active for the first time this season on Thursday, Cowley adds. Kawamura has fully recovered from the blood clot in his lower right leg which prompted the team to release him. “Rehab wasn’t easy,” Kawamura said. “It was a long way. I found out I had a blood clot before the season started and I felt real bad because I was so super excited to play. I’m super happy to be here and to be back on the court.” At 5’7″, Kawamura is the shortest player in the NBA, but he’s confident in his ability to play in the league and the longtime Bulls fan is “super excited” to play for the team and its fans.
- Rookie guard Tre Johnson, the No. 6 overall pick in the 2025 draft, suffered a right ankle sprain in Thursday’s victory over Milwaukee and was ruled out for the remainder of the contest, the Wizards announced (via Twitter). Johnson played 11 minutes prior to the injury.
Nets May Make Offer For Giannis Antetokounmpo
Although the Nets clearly aren’t focused on winning games this season, they’ve long had their sights set on Giannis Antetokounmpo and their rebuild shouldn’t prevent them from making an offer for the Bucks superstar, says Brian Lewis of The New York Post (subscriber link). Multiple sources Lewis has spoken to said the Nets plan to be competitive in 2026/27.
“Then this is their moment,” one league source told The Post. “Really depends on if they decide that their aimless tank is over. They could sure make the best offer.”
As Lewis writes, “best” is a relative term and an ideal offer for Milwaukee depends on what the team is prioritizing. But the Nets certainly have a large stash of draft assets if they decide to pursue the two-time MVP.
On the latest edition of the Hoop Collective podcast (YouTube link), ESPN’s Brian Windhorst agreed that the Nets could be a suitor for Antetokounmpo, Lewis notes.
“Brooklyn has 10 tradable firsts, Michael Porter Jr. and 11 tradable firsts as of draft night,” Windhorst said. “… I think Brooklyn will seriously consider making an offer.”
Lewis’ aforementioned source assumed Porter would be involved in an outgoing package for Giannis, but an assistant GM thought the 27-year-old forward would be more likely to stay in Brooklyn, speculating that Nic Claxton and Terance Mann would be included instead for salary-matching purposes.
“The Nets make a lot of sense for him,” one Eastern Conference assistant GM told Lewis. “They have some good future picks. [They] could, in theory, trade five future [first-round] picks, keep this year’s pick, shut him down for the year? Tank?“
Cavs’ De’Andre Hunter Likely To Be Traded?
After reporting on Wednesday that the Cavaliers‘ front office was hesitant to trade De’Andre Hunter for less than it gave up to acquire him a year ago (Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, three second-round picks, and two pick swaps), Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints now hears the veteran forward is likely to be moved prior to the February 5 deadline (Twitter links).
The Lakers and a “couple other” teams have been speaking to the Cavs about Hunter, league sources tell ClutchPoints. The Los Angeles Times previously cited Hunter as a possible Lakers target.
The Nets have emerged as a team willing to help facilitate a deal, according to Siegel, and L.A. has shown interest in Haywood Highsmith and Day’Ron Sharpe. Siegel doesn’t state it outright, but that construct implies Brooklyn would likely take on unwanted Lakers salaries in exchange for draft assets.
As Siegel writes, some members of Cleveland’s front office support the idea of moving off Hunter’s contract, with second-year Lakers forward Dalton Knecht heading back to Cleveland. That suggests the Cavaliers, who are the only NBA team over the second tax apron and are projected to have a massive luxury tax bill, view a potential deal as a salary dump.
Still, Siegel cautions that talks have been ongoing, so that three-team construct is merely one of multiple possibilities.
Hunter is converting a career-worst 30.9% of his three-point attempts this season after making a career-high 40.5% of his outside looks in 2024/25. For context, his career percentage is in the middle of those two figures (36.5%).
Hunter, 28, is owed $23.3MM in ’25/26 and $24.9MM in ’26/27. In 42 games this season, he has averaged 13.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 26.2 minutes per contest.
Knicks Rumors: KAT, Giannis, Yabusele, Targets, Bridges
The Knicks reportedly spoke to the Bucks about a possible Giannis Antetokounmpo trade last offseason after the two-time MVP identified New York as a preferred landing spot, but those talks didn’t go anywhere. That could be partly because Karl-Anthony Towns was rumored to be the Knicks’ outgoing salary, and some people around the league don’t highly value the former No. 1 overall pick.
“I don’t think there is a [trade] market for KAT,” an NBA executive told Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscriber link). “Not that he is a bad player, but he’s not a winning player. … It’s too much money to spend on him.”
Knicks sources tell Sam Amick of The Athletic that the offseason trade talks involving the two big men created “hard feelings” between Towns and the front office that “remain to this day.”
For his part, Towns downplayed his name being involved in recent trade chatter, Bondy writes in another story. The five-time All-Star has known Leon Rose for years, as the Knicks’ president was Towns’ former agent at CAA, but they haven’t spoken about any of the speculation.
“I feel like I’ve been in trade rumors a lot for a lot of times, for a year damn near. That don’t matter to me,” said Towns, who was traded from the Timberwolves to the Knicks before last season. “I don’t look at social media or none of that stuff. I focus on the job on hand which is trying to get wins every single night. As long as I do that, I do my job, I go home happy and I feel accomplished. I’m not worried about what anybody got to say or people write or anything like that.”
Here are a few more rumors and notes from New York:
- According to Bondy, the Knicks remain highly interested in Antetokounmpo, but Milwaukee is reportedly looking for “blue-chip young talent” and several draft picks in any deal involving the nine-time All-NBA forward, and New York simply lacks the necessary assets to have a competitive bid compared to other teams, which control their future first-round picks. Unless Antetokounmpo specifically requests to be traded to the Knicks, they’re a “long shot” to land him, says Bondy. Of course, even if Giannis does prefer to play in New York, the Bucks aren’t obligated to fulfill the request. New York’s odds of landing Antetokounmpo would theoretically improve in the offseason, Bondy notes, when the team will have two first-round picks to trade, as opposed to the top-eight protected 2026 first-round pick the Knicks currently control from the Wizards that will likely turn into two second-rounders.
- The Knicks are still actively looking to unload Guerschon Yabusele‘s contract and have been talking to multiple teams about possible trades, Bondy reports (subscription required). Bondy continues to hear Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado is on the team’s radar, and confirms Yves Missi is as well. Kings guard Keon Ellis is another player who has fans in the Knicks organization, a source tells Bondy.
- Yabusele, a french forward/center, holds a $5.8MM player option for next season. When asked about the possibility of returning to the EuroLeague at some point, Yabusele didn’t rule it out but said his focus is on the NBA, per Toni Canyameras of Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo (Twitter video link). “I feel like that’s a good question,” Yabusele said. “I definitely don’t know what tomorrow is going to be like or anything like that. But I never close my door on anything. Obviously it was so [difficult to make it back] to the NBA [that I’m focused on staying] in the NBA, but we will see what opportunities present themselves. There’s definitely going to be a conversation to have, and [we’ll] see what the [European options are]. We will see. I will never say never [to a potential return].”
- Veteran wing Mikal Bridges has been in a slump for most of the past month, but he torched the Raptors in Wednesday’s win at Toronto, finishing with 30 points on 12-of-15 shooting in 36 minutes. Bridges, a Philadelphia native who played college ball at Villanova, struggled in Saturday’s loss in Philly, scoring just nine points on 3-of-16 shooting. He said that game served as something of a wake-up call (Twitter video link via Knicks on MSG). “I think a lot of it comes from not just shooting the ball, I think I just wasn’t playing how I was supposed to be playing. I think I wasn’t coachable enough,” Bridges said. “I don’t know what it was. Maybe I felt too much entitlement. Just kinda had to talk to myself a little bit about it and just be coachable and be the best teammate I can be and let the basketball speak for itself.”
Aaron Gordon Out At Least 4-6 Weeks With Hamstring Strain
Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon will be reevaluated in four-to-six weeks due to a right hamstring strain, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
Bennett Durando of The Denver Post confirms the news (via Twitter).
Gordon, a key starter for the Nuggets, aggravated his right hamstring strain in a January 23 victory at Milwaukee. The team was cautiously optimistic his latest strain wasn’t severe as his first, which sidelined him for six weeks, but it appears he’ll end up facing a similar recovery timeline.
In 23 appearances this season, Gordon has averaged 17.7 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 27.9 minutes per game, with a strong shooting slash line of .509/.400/.789. The 30-year-old is also one of the best defenders on Denver’s roster.
The Nuggets have a 17-6 record when Gordon plays this season, compared to a 14-10 mark when he’s unavailable. They’re currently 31-16, the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference.
While Denver will be without Gordon for several weeks — likely for all of February — they should have superstar center Nikola Jokic back in the near future. Charania reported on Tuesday that the three-time MVP, who has been out for a month due to a hyperextended left knee and bone bruise, is expected to be reevaluated next week.
Blazers’ Duop Reath Out For Season Following Foot Surgery
Duop Reath underwent surgery on Thursday morning to repair a stress fracture in his right foot, according to the Trail Blazers, who announced (via Twitter) that the third-year center will miss the remainder of the 2025/26 season.
Reath is expected to make a full recovery, the team added.
It’s a tough blow for the 29-year-old, who will be a restricted free agent this summer if he’s tendered a qualifying offer. Although that QO is worth a fairly modest $3MM, it certainly doesn’t seem like a lock that Reath will receive it, given the limited role he’s played the past two seasons.
Reath, who went undrafted in 2018 out of LSU and spent several years overseas before catching on with Portland in October 2023, was a rotation regular for the Blazers as a rookie in 2023/24, averaging 9.1 points and 3.7 rebounds while shooting 35.9% from three-point range in 68 appearances (17.9 minutes per game).
However, he only averaged 4.2 PPG and 2.0 RPG in 10.2 MPG across 46 appearances last season, and played just 8.1 MPG in 32 games this season, averaging 2.9 PPG and 1.2 RPG. He has been behind Donovan Clingan and Robert Williams on Portland’s depth chart in ’25/26, receiving about equal playing time as rookie Yang Hansen.
The Trail Blazers have been hit hard by injuries all season long, with Scoot Henderson, Matisse Thybulle, Blake Wesley, Jrue Holiday, and Jerami Grant all missing extended time and Kris Murray currently out indefinitely due to a lumbar strain.
Injury Notes: Curry, Edwards, Avdija, LaVine, Monk
Warriors star Stephen Curry scored 26 points in 28 minutes during Sunday’s blowout win at Minnesota and was cautiously optimistic after the game about suiting up for Monday’s rematch with the Wolves (Twitter video link via Warriors on NBCS). However, he played through some pain in his right knee, tweets ESPN’s Anthony Slater, and was ultimately ruled out for the second end of a back-to-back.
Steve Kerr said Curry’s knee injury isn’t serious, according to Nick Friedell of The Athletic (Twitter link), and Golden State’s head coach is hopeful the 37-year-old guard will be active for Wednesday’s contest in Utah.
Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:
- Star guard Anthony Edwards was downgraded to questionable and then out for Monday’s eventual win over Golden State due to right foot injury management, the Timberwolves announced (via Twitter). According to Chris Hine of The Star Tribune (Twitter link), Edwards went through a pregame warmup and was ruled out shortly thereafter. “It was news to me, honestly,” head coach Chris Finch said after the game (Twitter link via Hine). “He had pain from the foot that’s been troubling him.” When asked if Edwards would be available for both ends of Minnesota’s back-to-back later this week, Finch said he wasn’t sure, Hine adds (via Twitter).
- Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija missed Monday’s loss to Boston, his second straight absence, but he’s expected to return to action on Tuesday at Washington, tweets Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report. Avdija aggravated a back injury last week and interim head coach Tiago Splitter explained the team gave him an extra day of rest on Monday as a precaution.
- Kings guards Zach LaVine (lower back soreness) and Malik Monk (right ankle soreness) are questionable for Tuesday’s contest vs. New York, per Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter link). LaVine was out for Sunday’s loss in Detroit due to the back issue, while Monk played 22 minutes, scoring 19 points in the process.
Stein’s Latest: Towns, Holiday, Knicks, Davis, Eason
Steve Popper of Newsday reported last week that the Knicks have talked to multiple teams about the possibility of trading Karl-Anthony Towns. Ian Begley of SNY.tv and Sam Amick of The Athletic reported differently, stating that they haven’t heard any buzz about the Knicks discussing Towns trades.
Sources told Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscriber link) on Monday that the Knicks haven’t been “shopping” the 30-year-old or talking Towns trades with opposing teams. Bondy acknowledges that could change in the coming days, but he doesn’t expect the former No. 1 overall pick to be on the move by February 5.
According to Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Substack link), while New York’s front office has attempted to downplay Towns-related chatter, some rival teams believe that’s just posturing and that the five-time All-Star may be available under certain circumstances. At minimum, those clubs think the Knicks want to know what the market for Towns would look like, Stein writes.
Towns, 30, has averaged 20.5 points, 11.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists on .469/.364/.856 shooting through 42 games this season (31.6 minutes per contest). He’s under contract through 2027/28, including a $61MM player option in that final season.
Here are a few more trade rumors from Stein’s latest round-up:
- Stein has heard “rumbles” that the Knicks have explored the viability of trying to trade for Trail Blazers guard Jrue Holiday. Acquiring Holiday might make New York an even more appealing landing spot for his former Bucks teammates Giannis Antetokounmpo, according to Stein, who adds that the Knicks are said to be longtime fans of the six-time All-Defensive member and view him as a strong fit in the backcourt next to Jalen Brunson.
- Despite the external chatter about New York potentially weighing major moves, sources close to the Knicks have insisted to Stein that they’re more focused on small-scale deals involving Guerschon Yabusele, who makes $5.5MM this season and holds a $5.8MM player option for 2026/27.
- Anthony Davis appears unlikely to be traded prior to the deadline, Stein confirms. The Mavericks are expected to continue fielding offers for the injured big man over the next several days, but there doesn’t seem to be any momentum towards a deal and Stein hears the 10-time All-Star prefers to stay with Dallas for the remainder of the season.
- The Rockets have made Tari Eason off limits in trade talks ahead of the deadline, Stein reports. The 24-year-old forward, who has dealt with a variety of injuries over the past few seasons, is converting a career-high 46.6% from three-point range in ’25/26 and will be a restricted free agent in the summer.
- In case you missed it, we passed along several more rumors from Stein on Sunday.
Trade Rumors: Kuminga, Lakers, Morant, Ivey, Raptors
Although the Lakers are intrigued by Jonathan Kuminga, the Warriors have “made it clear” that Los Angeles doesn’t have any players they covet, according to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints, who reports (via Twitter) that no offers have been made and the two teams aren’t having active discussions about the former lottery pick.
Siegel hears the Warriors continue to look for an upgrade on the wing using Kuminga’s outgoing salary for matching purposes (Twitter link). He claims that even if the Lakers offered their lone tradable first-round pick for the 23-year-old, the Warriors still wouldn’t make a deal with their division rivals, since Golden State isn’t interested in any of L.A.’s players.
Kuminga recently suffered a bone bruise in his left knee. There’s currently no timeline for his return, though it isn’t believed to be a long-term injury.
Here are a few more trade rumors from around the NBA:
- A report earlier this month indicated that the Pelicans held some interest in Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant, who is out at least three weeks due to a left elbow sprain. However, Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Twitter link) cites a source who says the two clubs aren’t engaged in talks regarding the two-time All-Star “despite consistent speculation to the contrary.”
- The Pistons have shown a willingness to listen to offers for Jaden Ivey, according to Siegel. While it would take a “substantial upgrade” for Detroit to part with the fourth-year guard, Siegel hears the Pistons are looking for help on the wing, noting that they’ve recently been linked to Pelicans forward Herbert Jones. The fifth overall pick of the 2022 draft, Ivey is averaging a career-low 17.0 minutes per game (through 29 appearances) ahead of restricted free agency.
- Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca takes a look at what moves the Raptors might make ahead of the February 5 deadline, writing that the most likely outcome appears to be dipping below the luxury tax line while simultaneously looking for depth at center. Lewenberg lists Daniel Gafford, Goga Bitadze and Day’Ron Sharpe as a few names Toronto has been keeping an eye on.
Latest On Giannis Antetokounmpo
Head coach Doc Rivers confirmed that Giannis Antetokounmpo has been diagnosed with a right calf strain on Monday, but he claimed the Bucks don’t have a timeline for the two-time MVP’s return, per Steve Megargee of The Associated Press.
“There’s really no timetable,” Rivers said.
Antetokounmpo said he expected to be out four-to-six weeks after reinjuring his calf in Friday’s loss to Denver.
“I felt like I couldn’t explode,” Antetokounmpo said after the game. “I could jog. I couldn’t get on my toes, so I was kind of jogging on my heel the majority of the game. I didn’t have the same explosiveness, but I still felt like I could help. At the end, when it popped, I had to get out. I couldn’t walk.”
As Megargee notes, Antetokounmpo initially strained his right soleus — one of the muscles in the calf — on December 3, causing him to miss eight games last month. He has also strained his left calf multiple times, but Rivers said the Bucks haven’t considered shutting the 31-year-old down for the rest of the season.
“There’s no thought to that,” Rivers said. “But listen, there’s no timetable either.”
Here’s more on Antetokounmpo, whom rival teams believed the Bucks might make available before the injury:
- If the Bucks decide to listen to offers for Antetokounmpo prior to the trade deadline, which teams would be in the best position to pursue him? Bobby Marks of ESPN breaks down all 29 opposing teams into tiers, including a group of 10 clubs who have the most to offer Milwaukee. According to Marks, the Pistons, Raptors and Trail Blazers — in that order — stand out as three teams who would theoretically have the least difficulty trading for the Greek superstar.
- The Knicks were reportedly Antetokounmpo’s preferred destination last offseason. How could they pull off a trade for the 10-time All-Star? Yossi Gozlan of The Third Apron (Substack link) explores that subject, writing that New York would likely need at least one additional team to act as a facilitator to make a deal work. Gozlan points to the Trail Blazers as a logical fit in that scenario, as they’re said to be fans of Mikal Bridges and control Milwaukee’s first-round picks from 2028-30.
- Henry Abbott of TrueHoop spoke to several NBA sources last week and all agreed the Bucks and Antetokounmpo appear destined to part ways, the only question is whether it will occur in the next 10 days or in the offseason. Abbott also heard a rumor that Antetokounmpo was considering firing his longtime agent Alex Saratsis over his inability to get his client traded, with Rich Paul apparently hoping to capitalize if that comes to fruition. Abbott acknowledges it’s hard to know what’s true and what isn’t, since he received conflicting feedback from his sources, but he notes that players only have to wait seven days to swap agents now instead of 15, so it’s possible it could still occur before the deadline. Saratsis was still listed as Antetokounmpo’s agent as of Monday, Abbott notes.