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Brian Windhorst: Bobby, if you were going to offer an enormous amount of draft capital or young players or whatever you would do, that you would want and have a pretty good idea that Giannis Antetokounmpo was going to take your extension. And that extension I believe it can be four years and what, 270 something like that? Bobby Marks: 275. Actually, if he opted in and then extended for three years, he probably can make another million dollars. So, I mean, it's kind of like pick whatever one you want to do. Windhorst: Well, one thing I know about Giannis is that he does consider the money. The money is not just insignificant to him. He talks about it. That's one of the things like if you're in one of the Texas teams you can say ‘hey, State income tax.’ But it's also a consideration for the team. The team giving him 275 million for a guy who's 31 years old who is having calf problems. I think most teams would say yes, but I'm not sure everybody would. In fact, I know that there's one team I talked to who would be able to put a package together, a pretty compelling package, and they said, "We're just not crazy about that contract with our other options that we can do. Just don't know if we want to commit to 275 to him.”
The Golden State Warriors have the most attractive package to offer the Milwaukee Bucks for two-time MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo, per ESPN's Brian Windhorst. "The Golden State Warriors are a team that immediately rises to the top of the list," Windhorst said on NBA Today. " As far as the teams that can make a straight up trade with the Bucks. ... The Warriors hold all their future draft assets, they can trade all of them.
NBA Courtside: Brian Windhorst on LeBron and Jeanie Buss: "For 20 plus years now, part of dealing with LeBron is dealing with headaches. Sometimes he is going to upset you but whatever he does to upset you he makes up for it x10. x20. x50. That was the case in Cleveland, Miami, and now in LA. Has Jeanie been upset with LeBron at times? Absolutely. Would she give anything back about the last 8 years? Absolutely not!"
Brian Windhorst: The Spurs and the Pistons are two teams that are faced with that sort of same situation. They both have extra draft capital. They both have expiring contracts. They both have, you know, young pieces other people want. Like, it's going to be some temptation. And I'm not saying the Spurs will resist, but I would be stunned if they gave Stephon Castle away for almost anything.
Brian Windhorst: The trend in the league right now is that depth and flexibility are valued more than sort of star talent. Now, superstar talent, there's always a demand. If you're going to put Luka on the market, like there will be those that's a trade that's going to get done. If Giannis comes to market, it's still an if, whether it's this season or next summer, a trade will get done. But there's this collection of players out there who are big on salary and a lot of them have some red mark on their CV whether it's an injury history or maybe their age or they want a new contract. Like these are guys that you would have no problem trading two, three years ago that because of the reality of the aprons and because of the way teams are prioritizing depth and team building in the apron era where it's just harder to trade them.
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We asked Brian Windhorst how he views NBA Europe and how much it’s talked about in the United States. “Very little. The NBA will do what it wants. I don’t believe it will be successful, because I think there isn’t enough talent in the EuroLeague right now. I also think it will be very challenging to create teams from scratch and expect results. I completely understand why the NBA is doing this, and I’m sure they’ll try. I hope it succeeds, because I think that if there were a very strong European championship, competitions could be created with the NBA, with Africa, Australia, and Asia, and that would be fantastic.”
Still, he doesn’t hide that he’s skeptical. “I’m skeptical because I’ve spent a lot of time in Europe, and Europeans don’t experience basketball the way Americans do. You can’t just take an American league, put it in Europe, and say: ‘Here, play.’ It simply doesn’t work that way. And from what I’ve heard about this league, they’re trying to transfer the American league to Europe. That’s why I understand why they’re doing it. I hope it works, because if you’re investing in basketball in Europe, that’s probably a good thing. You could also argue the opposite: the reason European basketball isn’t stronger is that there hasn’t been enough investment, and someone has to do that—and it hasn’t been done enough in Europe. Americans believe there’s a lot of untapped potential and that they can develop it.”
We also asked him for his opinion on the All-Star Game, where this year Team USA will play against Team World. The NBA’s goal is to make the game itself more interesting. “I hope that’s true, but I’m skeptical it will happen. It would be great for the All-Star Game if Team World won. But I’ve given up on the All-Star Game. I don’t go anymore. Last year I didn’t even watch it. I couldn’t tell you a single thing that happened in last year’s All-Star Game. If the Americans play at full intensity and the World—basically Europeans and Canadians—play at full strength and the World wins, that would be great. I think the NBA would secretly love for the World to win, so there’d be a little shame among the Americans. But my problem is that I know there actually wouldn’t be any shame. When it comes to an exhibition game, Americans are just there to have fun.”
ESPN is rolling out a fresh look for NBA Countdown, adding new voices and upgraded technology as the network prepares for its next slate of marquee game nights. The revamped studio team will debut Wednesday, November 19, at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN and the ESPN App. Senior writer Brian Windhorst joins the program after signing a multi-year extension with the network. His addition strengthens a panel that will now feature 2023 NBA champion head coach Michael Malone and 2008 NBA champion Kendrick Perkins as analysts.
Two weeks into the 2025-26 NBA season, ESPN has re-signed one of its top talents. On Friday, the network announced that it has agreed to a multi-year contract extension with Brian Windhorst, who will continue in his role as an NBA senior writer. According to a release, the Akron, Ohio, native will “continue to provide insights and analysis across ESPN platforms.”
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Courtside Buzz: WEMBY IS 7’7”?! 7’4” Boban Marjanovic says he now looks up at Victor Wembanyama when standing next to him & Boban & ESPN’s Brian Windhorst think Wembanyama could now be 7’7”. Wembanyama is listed at 7’5” at 21 years old. Thoughts? 🤔
WEMBY IS 7’7”?! 7’4” Boban Marjanovic says he now looks up at Victor Wembanyama when standing next to him & Boban & ESPN’s Brian Windhorst think Wembanyama could now be 7’7”.
— Courtside Buzz (@CourtsideBuzzX) October 14, 2025
Wembanyama is listed at 7’5” at 21 years old.
Thoughts? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/D8tYpnjC0g
ESPN senior NBA writer Brian Windhorst, whose contract with the company is said to expire this summer, said on the Sports Media with Richard Deitsch podcast that he is not currently in active negotiations for a renewal. Windhorst has been a member of the network for the last 15 years, appearing across studio programming and other broadcasts. “I’ve been at ESPN 15 years and the company has been wonderful to me, and I would love to continue at ESPN,” Windhorst said. “There’s no negotiations, so I can very simply say to you there’s no negotiations. So I would love to stay on if that works. If that doesn’t work, I’m 47, I’m not 64. My career will continue, I hope, but I appreciate that people do write about it and care because it does show a different thing, but I’ve covered the NBA for 23 years. I want to cover the NBA.”
Windhorst acknowledged that he is not worried about the status of his deal and aligned his focus on the NBA Playoffs and subsequent events surrounding the league, which has consisted of the NBA Draft, free agency and the ongoing NBA Summer League. Over the years, he has inked a number of contracts at ESPN and shared that he has not had a stressful situation because the deals are generally lined up with the start of the league season. “When our season ends in July, a lot of people are on vacation, so it is not unusual for this business to be taken care of later,” Windhorst said. “But I’m going to keep getting up and working for ESPN.”
ESPN senior NBA writer Brian Windhorst, whose contract with the company is said to expire this summer, said on the Sports Media with Richard Deitsch podcast that he is not currently in active negotiations for a renewal. Windhorst has been a member of the network for the last 15 years, appearing across studio programming and other broadcasts.