Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2018 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s moves from the last several months and look ahead to what the 2018/19 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Milwaukee Bucks.
Signings:
Standard contracts:
- Ersan Ilyasova: Three years, $21MM. Third year non-guaranteed. Signed using mid-level exception.
- Brook Lopez: One year, $3.38MM. Signed using bi-annual exception.
- Pat Connaughton: Two years, $3.36MM. Second year non-guaranteed. Signed using mid-level exception.
- Two-way contracts:
- Non-guaranteed camp contracts:
- Christian Wood: Two years, minimum salary. $100K partial guarantee.
- Tim Frazier: One year, minimum salary.
- Jordan Barnett: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- Robert Johnson: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- Brandon McCoy: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- Shabazz Muhammad: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- Ike Nwamu: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- Travis Trice: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- James Young: One year, minimum salary (waived).
Trades:
- None
Draft picks:
- 1-17: Donte DiVincenzo — Signed to rookie contract.
Departing players:
- Brandon Jennings (waived)
- Shabazz Muhammad (re-signed, then waived)
- Xavier Munford (two-way)
- Jabari Parker
- Marshall Plumlee (two-way)
- Jason Terry
- Tyler Zeller (waived)
Other offseason news:
- Hired Mike Budenholzer as head coach to replace interim coach Joe Prunty; finalized new coaching staff.
- Mirza Teletovic announced his retirement.
Salary cap situation:
- Remained over the cap.
- Carrying approximately $113.9MM in guaranteed salaries.
- Hard-capped at $129.82MM.
- No cap exceptions left besides minimum salary exception.
Check out the Milwaukee Bucks’ full roster and depth chart at RosterResource.com.
Story of the summer:
When analyzing the most important offseason additions, one can’t overlook the change at head coach for the Bucks, who brought in Mike Budenholzer to replace Joe Prunty following Jason Kidd‘s in-season dismissal. Budenholzer established himself as one of the elite coaches in the league during his tenure with the Hawks, using a combination of ball movement, modern floor-spacing, and tough defense to win games.
Beyond the move to bring in Budenholzer as head coach, the Bucks went out and added two veterans who can space the floor and soak up frontcourt minutes around Giannis Antetokounmpo in Ersan Ilyasova and Brook Lopez. Ilyasova is coming off a season in which he averaged 10.9 points and 5.9 rebounds per game while knocking down 36% of his 3-pointers. Meanwhile Lopez is coming off a down year with the Lakers, but he still averaged 13 points and 4 rebounds per game while hitting 34.5% of his shots from beyond the arc.
Both players are tested veterans that can hit 3-pointers at a league average rate. Now Budenholzer has several options as he looks to space the floor for Antetokounmpo to attack the basket and find open teammates.
Lopez projects to round out the starting lineup alongside Eric Bledsoe, Tony Snell, Khris Middleton and Antetokounmpo. Such a lineup boasts several solid defenders, ball-handlers and shooters. While the Bucks have struggled defensively in recent seasons, they should be able to improve now that Budenholzer is running more traditional defensive schemes.
As the Bucks look to take a jump on that end of the floor, it will be their refined and improved offense that captivates on a nightly basis. After Milwaukee finished 25th in the league in 3-pointers attempted per game last season (24.7), that number jumped up to 40.3 attempts per game throughout the preseason, highlighting the club’s new emphasis on shooting and floor-spacing.
While other teams made big splashes in free agency, don’t let the Bucks fool you with their modest additions of Lopez and Ilyasova. Coupling those signings with the addition of Budenholzer as coach creates a recipe for a much-improved team on both ends of the floor.
Key offseason losses:
The most recognizable offseason loss was that of Jabari Parker, the former second overall pick who was entering restricted free agency. While it’s easy to point to Parker’s counting statistics (career 15.3 points, 5.5 rebounds per game) to claim that the Bucks will miss his scoring prowess, his poor defense shouldn’t be overlooked.
Parker routinely posted a negative net rating when on the floor during his time in Milwaukee, highlighting his inability to make consistent contributions to winning basketball. Throw in the fact that he played in a combined 82 games over the past two seasons and it’s not overly shocking that the Bucks were willing to allow him to depart for the Bulls.
The Bucks also parted ways with Terry and Zeller, two veterans who played semi-regular roles for the team last season. Terry provided shooting and another capable ball-handler in his 51 games, while Zeller provided depth at center after the Bucks traded for him at the deadline. Both players remain free agents ahead of the upcoming season.
Key offseason additions:
The Bucks have been looking to fill the void at center in recent seasons, and it’s hard to imagine a better low-cost fit than Lopez. The 30-year-old big man projects to be the club’s starting center and can add post scoring and competent 3-point shooting in the starting lineup. While acquiring Ilyasova was a very good addition to the team’s depth, Lopez figures to have a significant role on day one as the team’s best option at center.
The Bucks also added some additional playmaking and shooting in the form of Pat Connaughton and Donte DiVincenzo. Connaughton is coming off the best season of his career as he averaged 5.4 points per game while knocking down 35.2% of his 3-pointers. Both project to provide solid depth in the backcourt alongside Sterling Brown and add more shooting to a roster that could really use it outside of the starting lineup.
Outlook for 2018/19:
The Bucks have disappointed in recent seasons relative to the increasing expectations they face each year. After winning 44 games last season and being eliminated in seven games in the first round, the franchise made several key signings in the offseason, headlined by a new coach in Budenholzer.
Now Milwaukee has the roster to play a more modern style of basketball, with a supporting cast that should truly unlock Antetokounmpo’s full arsenal on a nightly basis. Couple that with the fact that the Bucks are in the Eastern Conference and you are looking at a team that should win around 48 games and make the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2001.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post. Luke Adams contributed to this post.
losing a 65 y/o jason terry’s not going to be easy – next man up!