Buy or Sell NBA Stars Returning to WWE SmackDown, CM Punk Injury Update, More Rumors

The pro wrestling rumor mill surrounding WWE and AEW continues to match the sweltering heat of the summer.

With AEW exiting Forbidden Door and starting to hint toward August's All In and WWE's Money in the Bank taking center stage ahead of SummerSlam, droves of rumblings have kept fans backpedaling while attempting to keep up.

This week, there is more buzz about possible returns and some rather notable changes to programming ideas for both companies, to name a few of the things making the rounds.

Here is a look at the most notable rumors of the week, plus a verdict as to whether fans should buy or sell on each.

It always felt like a little meta-drama between WWE and its broadcast partners was inevitable.

Some of this, at least, is due to WWE's push for more non-PG content lately.

According to the Wrestling Observer (h/t Randall Ortman of Cageside Seats), Fox has started to reel in offensive content and earned the ire of WWE in the process.

Considering some of the strange cuts to black during the June 28 SmackDown (one even appeared to have a Superstar teleport, and not intentionally as part of a story), this one rings very true.

Tack on the fact Raw is moving to Netflix and SmackDown to USA Network soon and a little drama seems to make sense, too.

Verdict: Buying

Speculation continues to rage around CM Punk's possible return.

With the calendar turning to July, fans have started to understandably wonder if Punk will actually be cleared to have a match against Drew McIntyre when SummerSlam rolls around on August 3.

According to Fightful Select (h/t Ortman), Punk still isn't cleared for action, which would seem to explain why he was apparently written off television via that bloody backstage beatdown from McIntyre.

Even so, it still feels like a massive sell that Punk won't be medically cleared for a match at SummerSlam. WWE has done far too good of a job building up one of the best non-Bloodline feuds fans have seen in years without either guy actually facing each other in a match.

Surely, WWE wouldn't have Punk costing McIntyre championships and the like if the two weren't going to be able to actually have a match at the second-biggest event of the year.

Verdict: Selling

Here's a possibly fun wrinkle—AEW could be adding another show soon.

At least that's the vibe from one Tony Khan, who told Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Ortman) that an "injury report" show could be in the works.

Easy buy. Maybe the "show" only ends up as say, a quick clip on social media every week that can take after WWE's push onto platforms with the WWE Speed concept.

But this idea would actually be pretty innovative. Injury reports have reached silly levels of popularity in sports like the NFL. And with how tuned-in to the backstage stuff wrestling fans are, it would be engaging for them to get updates.

Also, of course, those injury reports could blur the lines and work in some storyline injuries too, so it's a really interesting idea that hopefully gets some follow-through.

Verdict: Buying

WWE surprised local fans at Madison Square Garden on the June 28 edition of SmackDown by having Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers get in a confrontation with rival Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks.

According to PW Insider (h/t Ortman), that could merely be the beginning for both superstar players, as both are expected back on shows.

Fun as that might be for local fans at specific shows, NBA stars and non-WWE athletes have seemingly done less than ever on WWE programming, so this one is a sell.

While it was a fun one-off, which is exactly what it felt like, WWE has been putting an emphasis on not relying on part-timers and outsiders these days too, so Haliburton and Brunson popping up frequently flies in the face of that.

Verdict: Selling

Even before Ricochet's WWE contract actually expired, it felt like his debut in AEW was inevitable.

We're apparently one step closer to that, with Fightful Select (h/t Ortman) reporting that the expectation is Ricochet will make his debut soon.

Stylistically in the ring, Ricochet has always seemed like a better fit in AEW, which isn't a bad thing. Some Superstars are just better in different formats that play to certain strengths, which is at least partially why fans have seemed to fantasy-book this idea of Ricochet going to AEW in the first place.

While it probably won't generate the headlines outside of the wrestling realm that Mercedes Moné did, Ricochet has the upside of a guy who can be a massive player in AEW's main-event scene once it happens.

Verdict: Buying