NBA Landing spots for Giannis Antetokounmpo; Browns hire Todd Monken as next coach

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Good morning, sports fans! It's Austin Nivison kicking off your Thursday with the biggest and best stories from around the sports world. Giannis Antetokounmpo kicked the NBA trade rumor mill into high gear, the Browns have a new coach and there is more drama involving the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Let's get right to it, shall we?

😲 Five things to know Thursday

1. Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo is open to a trade. The two sides tried to hold on for as long as they could, but with the news that Antetokounmpo is ready to move on, it's time for the rumor mill to reach a fever pitch. The two-time MVP should fetch a blockbuster return, and with just days until the trade deadline arrives, a deal could materialize sooner rather than later.
2. The Browns hire Todd Monken. After spending three seasons in the AFC North as the offensive coordinator for the Ravens, Monken is staying in the division as the next coach of the Browns. The 60-year-old Monken will get his first crack at being a head coach after helping Lamar Jackson elevate his game in Baltimore, but this hire does come with risks.
3. Eli Manning falls short of the Pro Football Hall of Fame on his second ballot. One day after Bill Belichick's stunning Hall of Fame snub, Manning missed the Hall of Fame cut on his second opportunity. Manning, one of six players to own multiple Super Bowl MVPs, is one of the most complicated cases in Hall of Fame history. Now he'll have wait at least one more year to reach Canton. Speaking of that Belichick snub, Tom Brady and Robert Kraft are still scratching their heads.
4. Patrick Reed is eyeing PGA Tour reinstatement in 2027. The 2018 Masters champ, Reed announced he will apply for PGA Tour reinstatement in 2027. Reed's LIV Golf contract expired at the end of the 2025 campaign, and he will compete on the DP World Tour. On Aug. 25, 2026, Reed will become eligible to compete in PGA Tour events as a non-member, since that will be one year since his last LIV Golf event. Brooks Koepka is returning to the PGA Tour in 2026, and he discussed that at length this week.
5. The Rangers are preparing to trade Artemi Panarin. After seven seasons, the "Bread Man" era in New York appears to be over. The Rangers are prepared to hold Panarin out of the lineup until the Olympic break on Feb. 6 -- or until a trade materializes. Panarin immediately becomes the biggest fish on the trade market, and there are a handful of teams that would be perfect fits for the Russian superstar.

🏀 Do not miss this: Giannis Antetokounmpo trade destinations

Bucks GM Jon Horst will be a very popular man over the next few days. To put it more accurately, Giannis Antetokounmpo will be a very popular man because every NBA title hopeful will be trying to acquire him.

That being the case, our own Sam Quinn put together a list of the nine teams that could add Antetokounmpo between now and the summer. Perhaps the most high-profile destination is the Knicks, but they do have some hurdles to clear in order to make it happen.

Despite those obstacles, if Giannis wants to wind up in New York, then he may be able to force his way there.

• Quinn: "If Giannis wants the Knicks, he's probably going to have to stick his thumb on the scale. Maybe, just maybe, he can scare off other suitors by letting them know he'd only re-sign in New York. And maybe, just maybe, the Bucks could talk themselves into a star they could put on billboards as they sort through the wreckage of a post-Giannis future. There are a lot of maybes here. When the star wants a certain team, though, that team always has a reasonable shot."

Even if the Knicks don't acquire Antetokounmpo before the trade deadline, Karl-Anthony Towns may be on his way out, but that alone may not solve the team's defensive issues.

🏈 Grading second-year CFB coaches

When it comes to evaluating football coaches, it's always fun to review first-year coaches, but they haven't had much time to establish a culture or turn over the roster. You can glean more information from a coach's second year on the job, and it makes it easier to grade their job performance.

That's exactly what our team of college football experts did as they doled out grades for each second-year sideline boss, and I think they were more than fair. Take their review of Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer, who earned a "C+." He did lead the Crimson Tide to the College Football Playoff, but the team didn't exactly look like the juggernaut of days gone by, as Shehan Jeyarajah writes.

• Jeyarajah: "There were legitimate steps forward in DeBoer's second season -- and serious steps back. The Crimson Tide made it back to the SEC title game and CFP, but are still miles away from the national title contender they were under Nick Saban. With a third new QB in three years, DeBoer has to find a new identity."

In another realm of the college coaching world, Lincoln Riley is taking steps to make sure USC hits another level in 2026. The Trojans hired former TCU coach Gary Patterson as they build momentum.

👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest

• LeBron James got emotional in what could have been his final game in Cleveland.
• The Pistons have a glaring need they must address at the NBA trade deadline.
• Jon Gruden wants to coach again ... but not badly enough to work for the Jets.
• Bothered by the coaching snub, Browns DC Jim Schwartz plans to depart.
• North Carolina was one of the CBB teams hit hardest by the transfer portal.
• The judge (and Bama booster) who ruled in favor of Charles Bediako has been recused from the case.
• These 15 NFL players could be on the move -- in some form or another -- this offseason.
• Jose Mourinho was one of the biggest Champions League winners.
• The Maple Leafs are looking at a lost season in the latest NHL Power Rankings.
• Iowa QB Mark Gronowski was one of eight standouts at the Shrine Bowl.
• Princeton has quietly been the hottest team in women's basketball.
• Here's why a Belichick-level snub wouldn't happen in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
• Team USA can finally put its overseas Olympic woes to rest in 2026.

📺 What we're watching Thursday

🎾 Australian Open: Women's semifinals, 3 p.m. on ESPN2
⚽ RB Salzburg at Aston Villa, 3 p.m. on CBS Sports Network
🏀 Kansas at No. 12 TCU (W), 6 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 No. 13 Michigan State at Purdue (W), 6 p.m. on Big Ten Network
🏀 No. 24 Alabama at No. 23 Georgia (W), 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network
🏀 Colorado at No. 8 Iowa State (M), 7 p.m. on FS1
🏀 Bucks at Wizards, 7 p.m. on Prime Video
🏀 No. 7 Louisville at Stanford (W), 8 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 Wisconsin at No. 11 Ohio State (W), 8 p.m. on Big Ten Network
🏀 No. 20 Duke at Miami (W), 8 p.m. on ACC Network
🏀 No. 3 South Carolina at Auburn (W), 9 p.m. on SEC Network
🏀 Washington at No. 9 Illinois (M), 9 p.m. on FS1
🏀 Thunder at Timberwolves, 9:30 on Prime Video
🎾 Australian Open: Men's semifinals, 10:30 p.m. on ESPN