Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks have settled into a bit of a rhythm when it comes to roster construction. Every few years, he starts to apply a little bit of pressure behind the scenes. The Bucks, not wanting to lose him, take a big swing on the trade or free-agent market. Satisfied, Antetokounmpo signs a contract extension from there.
It happened in 2020, when Antetokounmpo was a year away from free agency and half of the league was carving out cap space to chase him. The Bucks traded for Jrue Holiday, and he extended thereafter. They went on to win a championship in 2021. In 2023, it was the same story. Antetokounmpo was getting antsy. He started to make real noise about leaving Milwaukee. The Bucks traded for Damian Lillard, and he once again extended.
That one didn’t go quite so well. The two of them never quite reached the level they needed to in order to compete for a championship, and health issues knocked them out of the first round of the past two postseasons. Lillard tore his Achilles tendon. Antetokounmpo weighed his options. So, on Tuesday, the Bucks took a bold step to improve around Antetokounmpo: they waived and stretched Lillard in order to create the cap space needed to sign Myles Turner outright. Antetokounmpo and Turner reportedly wanted to play together, and the Bucks made it happen.
Winners and losers of Myles Turner signing with Bucks: Damian Lillard, Pacers and any team who needs a center
Sam Quinn
There is one significant difference between the Turner addition and the trades for Lillard and Holiday. Sure, Turner isn’t an All-Star as they were, but it’s something else. Unlike in 2020 and 2023, Antetokounmpo is not extension-eligible this offseason. The Bucks may have staved off an imminent trade request, but they haven’t actually bought themselves more official team control. The timetable here is, therefore, no different than it was before free agency began. If the Bucks are indeed firmly against initiating a rebuild on their own terms and trading Antetokounmpo proactively, their goal therefore becomes clear: get good enough to earn a signature from Antetokounmpo next offseason.
Adding Turner is a start. There are very few centers in the NBA that can comfortably fit next to Antetokounmpo. Turner is one of them. His ability to shoot 3s will allow him to space the floor next to the two-time MVP, and the two of them together should provide an imposing rim-protecting duo. This is essentially what the Bucks had with Brook Lopez for so much of Antetokounmpo’s career, but with Lopez entering the postseason as a 37-year-old free agent, Milwaukee needed to get younger. They did so.
But filling the Turner slot, alone, isn’t nearly enough. After all, at their best, the Bucks also had stars in the backcourt (first Holiday, then Lillard) and at small forward (Khris Middleton before his injuries). Milwaukee has neither of those things right now. Outside of a front-court trio of Antetokounmpo, Turner and the re-signed Bobby Portis, Milwaukee’s roster is full of questions. Do the Bucks have a guard that can consistently score? Re-signing Gary Trent Jr. and Kevin Porter Jr. helps on this front, but they are bench players at this point. What about point-of-attack defense? Again, there’s a low-end answer here in Andre Jackson Jr., but they probably need to do better to compete in even a weaker Eastern Conference.
They still have chips to work with, but not many. Their first-round picks in 2031 and 2032 are unencumbered. One can be traded outright. The other can be dealt via swap rights. Those draft assets have more power than you might think. How good are the Bucks going to be in half a decade even if they never have to trade Antetokounmpo? His playing style, heavily reliant on athleticism, is unlikely to age especially well. They could do reasonably well on the trade market with those picks on the table, and given the pressure Antetokounmpo is likely applying, it would be hard to justify not at least trying to use them to improve.
Matching salary is going to be a bigger issue. That’s what happens when you waive a $50 million player. Their only substantial tradable salary right now is Kyle Kuzma, who is owed $22.4 million this year and $20.3 million next year. Kuzma didn’t exactly cover himself in glory during his brief time as a Buck, but he has been a starting-level player in the past.
Boston nabbed Anfernee Simons in its recent Jrue Holiday trade. The Celtics are also currently without a center, and have very little flexibility to add one as currently constructed. Could Milwaukee save Boston some money in a swap of Kuzma for Simons, who makes $27.7 million, to help them potentially re-sign Al Horford? The Celtics would probably want draft capital to take on the Kuzma contract. The outright pick is too much, but would the Bucks think about a swap?
Portis is a fan favorite. He is also, sadly, a luxury, at least in the context of this roster. A second shooting big man would be nice to have, but his projected $13.6 million salary could be better used elsewhere. He won’t be tradable until Dec. 15, but he’d be a prime candidate to move during the season in exchange for some more perimeter defense. Maybe there’s something involving the size-needy Lakers and Jarred Vanderbilt, though he is a worse player than Portis. The same is true of Matisse Thybulle with the Trail Blazers. If Milwaukee wanted to take a major swing, they’d chase Pelicans wing Herb Jones, who is not only an elite defender, but can cover basically any position. He’d certainly cost an unprotected first-round pick and Portis. Even that may not be enough.
Virtually anything should be on the table. Fortunately, Milwaukee’s front office does not lack for creativity. Jon Horst pulled Turner out of thin air on Tuesday. He did the same with Lillard two years ago. This is a front office that has proven capable of making surprising upgrades, and even if they’re limited in how they can continue to add to this roster, they’re going to look into anything remotely plausible.
They’ll have to, because Turner alone likely won’t be enough to lift this team towards serious winning. At most sportsbooks, even after the Turner addition, Milwaukee is pegged as roughly a play-in team. Antetokounmpo wants championships, and without the promise of Lillard eventually returning, there isn’t another obvious All-Star in the building. Without the means to get one, they are going to have to nail just about every other move they make to convince him to sign that extension next offseason.