New WWE Rumors on Danhausen, Knicks' Jalen Brunson, CM Punk and Sheamus Backstage

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

WWE's Reported Plans for Danhausen, Brunson, Knicks Players at SNME

WWE is making plans for some crossovers between Danhausen and members of the New York Knicks on the July 18 edition of Saturday Night's Main Event at Madison Square Garden in New York City, but Jalen Brunson's participation is reportedly in question.

According to WrestleVotes on Fightful Select (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), WWE wanted Brunson to be part of the show and made creative pitches to involve him, but he underwent surgery on his left wrist after the NBA Finals, meaning he cannot get physically involved.

Despite that fact, WWE is reportedly still hopeful that Brunson will attend the show and be part of the broadcast in some way.

WWE reportedly invited multiple Knicks players to the show and some of them are expected to attend regardless of Brunson's status.

In addition to SNME taking place at the Knicks' home of MSG, the team has a major link to WWE in the form of Danhausen.

Danhausen famously cursed the Knicks early in the 2026 NBA playoffs to spite ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith, and they swiftly fell behind 2-1 to the Atlanta Hawks in their first-round series.

However, Danhausen then uncursed the Knicks, and they went on to win 15 of their next 16 games en route to winning their first championship since 1973.

Danhausen is slated to face JD McDonagh at Saturday Night's Main Event, and it won't be surprising if some Knicks lend him a helping hand.

Brunson won't be among them, but since he is a longtime wrestling fan who has appeared on WWE programming in the past, the NBA Finals MVP may still be present to enjoy the show.

Reported Reason for Punk's Move to SmackDown

WWE's decision to move CM Punk from Raw to SmackDown was reportedly the result of a request from NBCUniversal.

According to WrestleVotes on Fightful Select (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), NBCUniversal has wanted Punk on SmackDown for over a year due to the belief that he is among WWE's top stars.

A source expressed their belief to WrestleVotes that Punk could help SmackDown regain some of the momentum it has lost in recent months.

After being off WWE programming since the Raw after WrestleMania 42, Punk returned on Monday night's episode of Raw in Chicago as the surprise opponent for WWE champion Sami Zayn.

Cody Rhodes was attacked at the start of the show and ruled unfit to challenge Zayn, which led to the search for a replacement.

Punk's home crowd gave him a huge reaction when he was revealed as Zayn's opponent, and he went on to beat Sami for the WWE title.

Per WrestleVotes, Punk could still make some appearances on Raw moving forward when needed, but SmackDown will be his primary home for the foreseeable future as he holds the brand's top title.

Reported Backstage Details on Sheamus' WWE Departure

Sheamus reportedly had one high-up supporter in WWE who put in a good word for him prior to the announcement of his departure.

According to WrestleVotes on Fightful Select (h/t Steve Carrier of Ringside News), a high-level member of the WWE office "went to bat" for Sheamus during a discussion with parent company TKO.

The person reportedly pitched TKO on the idea that Sheamus brought significant value to WWE, even beyond his work in the ring.

Despite that, Sheamus' time in WWE has come to an end, as Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select reported Sunday that his contract was expiring and he was set to leave the company.

Fightful Select (h/t Neal Flanagan of Post Wrestling) added that Sheamus rejected a "restructured extension" with WWE before deciding to depart.

Sheamus, 48, has been under a WWE contract since 2006, and he made his main roster debut back in 2009.

He became one of the most accomplished WWE Superstars of all time during his tenure as a four-time world champion, five-time tag team champion and three-time United States champion.

Sheamus also won the Royal Rumble, Money in the Bank and King of the Ring one time each.

He is now moving on to the next chapter after two decades in WWE, though, and Sheamus figures to be a hot commodity as a free agent with AEW and other companies likely to express interest.