Milwaukee Bucks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Bucks To Waive Damian Lillard, Stretch Remaining Salary

July 1st, 2025 at 10:20am CST by Luke Adams

The Bucks are waiving injured point guard Damian Lillard and stretching the $112.6MM owed to him over the next two years across five seasons, reports ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link).

The move will help create the cap room necessary in order for the Bucks to complete their four-year, $107MM deal with free agent center Myles Turner.

It’s a shocking development, but Milwaukee was expected to aggressive this offseason in its efforts to upgrade the roster and convince superstar forward Giannis Antetokounmpo that he can still contend for a championship with the Bucks. And Lillard, who sustained a torn Achilles during the first round of the playoffs this spring, wasn’t going to be able to contribute to a title chase in 2025/26, as he’ll almost certainly miss most or all of the season.

As we explain in our glossary entry, the stretch provision allows teams to spread out a player’s remaining guaranteed salary across twice the remaining years left on his contract, plus one. That means the Bucks will now carry cap hits of $22,516,603 for the next five seasons for Lillard, instead of paying him $54,126,450 in 2025/26 and $58,456,566 in ’26/27.

The move creates more than $30MM in extra spending flexibility for Milwaukee this season.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN notes (via Twitter), teams aren’t permitted to waive and stretch a player if the move would result in waived-and-stretched salary taking up more than 15% of a season’s cap. But 15% of this season’s cap works out to about $23.2MM, so Lillard’s figure sneaks in below that threshold.

This is the largest waive-and-stretch in NBA history, Marks adds (via Twitter).

A team that waives a player and stretches his salary isn’t permitted to sign him until after the original end date of his contract, so the Bucks wouldn’t be able to bring back Lillard this season or next season once he’s healthy.

Lillard, who will turn 35 this month, averaged 24.9 points, 7.1 assists, and 4.7 rebounds per game in 58 starts for the Bucks this season, posting a shooting line of .448/.376/.921. He missed time near the end of the season after being diagnosed with a blood clot in his calf. Although the star guard was able to return during the playoffs, he suited up in just three games before tearing his Achilles.

Bucks, Myles Turner Finalize Four-Year Deal

July 1st, 2025 at 10:11am CST by Rory Maher

July 7: Turner is officially a Buck, per a press release from the team.

“We are thrilled that Myles chose our team and city!” general manager Jon Horst said in a statement. “He’s a winner and a dynamic player who fits us on both ends of the court. This is a big day for the Bucks and the Milwaukee community, and we are excited to welcome Myles and his family.”

July 1: Myles Turner is leaving Indiana after spending his entire 10-year career with the Pacers, according to Shams Charania of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that the veteran center has reached an agreement on a four-year, $107MM deal with the division-rival Bucks.

The contract will include a fourth-year player option and a 15% trade kicker, Charania adds.

According to Charania (Twitter links), Turner made it clear that he wanted to re-sign with the Pacers and tried to get a deal done with Indiana. However, ownership was reluctant to pay the luxury tax in 2025/26, particularly in the wake of Tyrese Haliburton‘s torn Achilles tendon.

Jake Fischer of The Stein Line also says (via Twitter) Turner wanted to remain with the Pacers, but hears they never offered him more than $60MM over three years.

Bucks GM Jon Horst worked with agent Austin Brown to secure Turner a nine-figure payday in a market with little cap space available, per Charania.

Turner’s floor-spacing and rim-protecting is somewhat similar to Brook Lopez, whom the Bucks lost to the Clippers in free agency. The big difference is Turner is 29, eight years younger than Lopez, and better fits Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s contention timeline.

Stunningly, the Bucks are waiving and stretching Damian Lillard — who also suffered a torn Achilles in the playoffs — to create the cap room necessary to sign Turner.

Turner helped the Pacers reach the NBA Finals for the second time in franchise history in 2024/25, pushing the heavily-favored Thunder to seven games before Haliburton’s untimely injury in the first quarter of the finale.

A former lottery pick (No. 11 overall in 2015), Turner averaged 15.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.0 blocks on .481/.396/.773 shooting in 72 regular season games last season (30.2 MPG). In 23 playoff contests (29.3 MPG), Indiana’s longtime starting center averaged 13.8 PPG, 4.8 RPG and 2.0 BPG on .484/.344/.771 shooting.

This is just our speculation, but it’s possible that Indiana might pursue center Deandre Ayton in the wake of Turner’s departure. The Pacers are the team that signed him to a maximum-salary offer sheet three years ago and he’ll be a free agent soon after reaching a buyout with the Trail Blazers.

Lakers Rumors: DFS, Ayton, LeBron, Wiggins, LaRavia

July 1st, 2025 at 7:49am CST by Luke Adams

After Dorian Finney-Smith turned down his $15.4MM player option for the 2025/26 season, the Lakers offered him a new contract, but it only covered two seasons, according to Dan Woike of The Athletic. The veteran forward instead agreed to a four-year, $53MM deal with Houston.

As Woike explains, the Lakers want to maintain as much future cap flexibility as they can in order to be able to pursue a star-level player to pair with Luka Doncic following LeBron James‘ eventual retirement.

That point has also been made by ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, who writes that the Lakers want to preserve 2027 cap room in the hopes of landing a maximum-salary player, and by Shams Charania, who discussed the subject on SportsCenter late on Monday night (Twitter video link).

“They are really prioritizing two-year contracts right now,” Charania said. “They want to have max-salary space in 2027.”

How that stance affects the Lakers’ search for a center remains to be seen. While Brook Lopez committed to the Clippers on Monday and Clint Capela agreed to a deal with Houston, it’s Deandre Ayton who has been the team’s top priority, according to Woike, who points out that Ayton and Doncic share the same agent (Bill Duffy).

It sounds like the Lakers are unlikely to offer more than two years to Ayton, so if there’s a rival suitor willing to put a longer deal on the table, that could be problematic for Los Angeles. However, I’d be a little surprised if that’s the case after his time in Portland ended via buyout.

Woike points to the Bucks as one team to watch for Ayton, noting that they should have access to most of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception and lost their starting center (Lopez) on Monday.

Here’s more on the Lakers:

ESPN’s Dave McMenamin spoke on NBA Today on Monday about where things stand with James following agent Rich Paul‘s Saturday statement about evaluating “what’s best for LeBron” as the star forward opted into the final year of his contract. “(Paul) has not had any discussion with the Lakers about wanting a trade, on the back end of this statement,” McMenamin said (YouTube link). “He did say that four teams have contacted him in the last 24 hours wanting to take trades, but Rich didn’t have any substantive conversations with those teams either. Right now, LeBron is focused on playing on a championship-caliber roster. Rich told me there’s no guarantees in building a championship-caliber roster, but we know what it looks like and what it doesn’t look like. And we’ll see if in a week from now – when Rob Pelinka‘s finished doing his work with this roster – if it looks like a winning, realistic situation.”
According to Jovan Buha (Twitter video link), the rumored trade talks between the Lakers and Heat about Andrew Wiggins haven’t gained any real momentum due to a “pretty high” asking price on Miami’s end. “We’re talking basically everything or close to everything that the Lakers could offer from a top-end asset standpoint,” Buha said. “So I don’t think that is going to happen. I don’t think the Lakers are trading Rui (Hachimura), a first, and Dalton (Knecht) for Andrew Wiggins. That’s not fair value. That’s not a realistic trade. I think Miami’s playing hardball. We’ll see if they soften their stance.”
League sources tell Woike that Jake LaRavia, who agreed to a two-year, $12MM deal with the Lakers on Monday, was the team’s first call when free agency opened, and that the free agent forward was impressed by the way Pelinka sold the Lakers’ strength and JJ Redick‘s “detailed” plan for how he would be used. One executive who spoke to Woike about the move lauded LaRavia for his toughness, shooting, and burgeoning play-making skills, while another said, “Everyone can use a player like him.”

Gary Trent Jr. Remains With Bucks On Two-Year Deal

June 30th, 2025 at 10:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

July 8: Trent’s new contract is now official, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

June 30: Free agent guard Gary Trent Jr. has agreed to a two-year, $7.5MM deal to remain with the Bucks, ESPN’s Shams Charania tweets. The second year includes a player option.

It’s slightly above the veteran’s minimum, so Milwaukee will apparently use its Non-Bird rights, which allows a team to re-sign a player for up to 120% of his previous salary or 120% of the league’s minimum salary (whichever is greater).

Trent played on the veteran’s minimum this past year despite being at least a part-time starter for Toronto the previous three seasons.

By getting a player option, Trent positions himself for another shot at free agency next summer when more teams are expected to have cap space.

Still just 26, Trent has been in the league since 2016. In his first season with the Bucks, he appeared in 74 games, making nine starts. He averaged 11.1 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.0 steal per game.

Trent made 43.1 percent of his shots, including a near career-high 41.6 percent from deep. Of the 8.9 shots he took per game, a majority (5.9) were beyond the three-point arc.

After Damian Lillard went down with an Achilles injury, Trent had two huge offensive games in the playoffs. He scored 37 points in Game 3 against Indiana and 33 in Game 5 during Milwaukee’s first-round loss.

Bucks Re-Sign Taurean Prince

June 30th, 2025 at 8:40pm CST by Luke Adams

July 8: Prince is officially back under contract with the Bucks, according to a press release from the team.

June 30: The Bucks and free agent forward Taurean Prince have reached an agreement on a two-year, minimum-salary contract, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter links). The second year of the deal will be a player option.

Prince started 73 of the 80 games he played for the Bucks in 2024/25, averaging 8.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in 27.1 minutes per night.

Prince’s ability to guard multiple positions on defense and knock down three-pointers on offense makes him a valuable rotation player on the wing. He made a career-high 43.9% of his attempts from beyond the arc in 2024/25.

Still, it’s worth noting that the 31-year-old struggled badly in the playoffs, scoring just six points on 2-of-10 shooting in 61 total minutes during the first-round series vs. Indiana. He lost his starting job after the first two games of the series and likely won’t be assured of reclaiming that role heading into training camp this fall.

Prince is the third Bucks free agent who has reached an agreement to re-sign with the team, joining Bobby Portis and Kevin Porter. However, Brook Lopez is leaving Milwaukee for the Clippers, so the club figures to be in the market for additional frontcourt help.

Bucks Re-Sign Kevin Porter Jr. To Two-Year Deal

June 30th, 2025 at 6:22pm CST by Luke Adams

July 7: Porter has officially re-signed with the Bucks, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.

June 30: The Bucks and free agent guard Kevin Porter Jr. have agreed to a two-year deal worth $11MM, sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

Porter turned down a $2.55MM player option over the weekend in order to become a free agent. He’ll have an opportunity to return to the open market again in a year, as his new deal will feature a player option for 2026/27, per Charania.

Porter opened the 2024/25 season with the Clippers before being sent to Milwaukee at the trade deadline. He finished the season strong with the Bucks, averaging 11.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in 19.9 minutes per game while shooting 49.4% from the floor, including 40.8% on threes.

The 25-year-old’s off-court history – ranging from a locker-room incident that ended his time in Cleveland to a domestic altercation that led to his exit from Houston – have limited his value to some extent in recent years, preventing him from securing big money or longer-term commitments. However, the Bucks liked their brief stint with Porter last season enough to move forward with him.

The Bucks will use the bi-annual exception to re-sign Porter, since they wouldn’t be able to complete the deal using his Non-Bird rights, notes Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link). The BAE will be worth about $10.5MM over two seasons.

Stein/Fischer’s Latest: Jerome, Kennard, Capela, Lakers, Bulls, More

June 30th, 2025 at 2:42pm CST by Luke Adams

In their latest round-up of scuttlebutt ahead of the start of free agency on Monday, Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link) reiterate or confirm a few of the rumors that have been percolating in recent days, writing that Dennis Schröder appears to be on track to join the Kings on a two-year deal worth the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, while D’Angelo Russell is widely expected to join the Mavericks on a two-year deal that utilizes the taxpayer mid-level.

Stein and Fischer also stress that the Grizzlies are increasingly regarded as the favorites to land free agent guard Ty Jerome, with rival teams expecting him to sign for a deal in the neighborhood of $9-10MM annually (Twitter link).

Additionally, Stein and Fischer confirm that the Rockets are now eyeing Luke Kennard in addition to Dorian Finney-Smith. Besides Houston, the Hawks and Nuggets are considered potential suitors for Kennard, one of the league’s best outside shooters, according to The Stein Line duo.

Here are a few more fresh pieces of intel from Stein and Fischer:

The Clippers are viewed as a viable candidate to land free agent center Clint Capela. Los Angeles is known to be in the market for an Ivica Zubac backup, with Drew Eubanks not expected to return.
If the Lakers end up losing Finney-Smith in free agency, they’re expected to express interest in another talented perimeter defender, De’Anthony Melton, Stein and Fischer report. Dan Woike of The Athletic (Twitter link) has also heard that there’s mutual interest between Melton and the Lakers. The veteran guard signed for the full non-taxpayer mid-level a year ago, but seems unlikely to land another deal in that range after missing nearly the entire season with a torn ACL.
There’s a “strong expectation” that free agent point guard Tre Jones will remain with the Bulls, Stein and Fischer say. K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network previously reported that the odds of a reunion between the two sides were rising following the team’s Lonzo Ball trade.
The Bucks are working on potential Pat Connaughton trade scenarios and have a couple possible pathways to a deal, per Stein and Fischer. Milwaukee would likely have to attach a sweetener to move Connaughton, but perhaps could acquire a player in return who would upgrade the rotation.
The Wizards have been gauging the trade market for a pair of veterans on expiring contracts, guard Marcus Smart and big man Kelly Olynyk, Stein and Fischer write. Olynyk technically isn’t even a Wizard yet, as the deal sending him from New Orleans to Washington will become official after the July moratorium — it sounds like there’s a chance he’s flipped to another team.
DeMarre Carroll and former Wizards assistant Brian Randle are expected to have two of the front-of-bench spots on Jordan Ott‘s coaching staff, but the new Suns coach is still seeking a lead assistant who has previous head coaching experience, according to Stein and Fischer.

Lakers Expect To Lose Finney-Smith, Add Free Agent Center

June 30th, 2025 at 11:41am CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers are preparing to lose free agent forward Dorian Finney-Smith, who has received strong interest from the Rockets, but his departure will open up a salary slot in their pursuit of a center, sources tell Dan Woike of The Athletic.

The Bucks‘ Brook Lopez and the Hawks‘ Clint Capela are among their targets, according to Woike, along with Deandre Ayton, who reached a buyout agreement with the Trail Blazers on Sunday. L.A. will have the $14.1MM non-taxpayer mid-level exception available as it goes shopping for a big man.

Woike hears that the Lakers want to preserve their future cap space in hopes of landing another star to pair with Luka Doncic, possibly next summer, so any deal with a center might be short term.

Lopez played for the Lakers during the 2017/18 season and has frequently been mentioned as a possibility to return. The 37-year-old is likely the best outside shooter on the market, connecting at 37.3% this season while averaging 13.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 80 games.

Capela, 31, would bring more of a shot-blocking presence. He has been one of the league’s top rebounders, especially on the offensive glass, since coming to Atlanta in 2020, but his numbers were down across the board this season as his playing time declined to 21.4 minutes per night.

Ayton missed more than half the season due to a calf strain, but he’s only 26 and has put up good numbers when healthy throughout his career. The Lakers wouldn’t be able to reach a deal with Ayton until he completes the waiver process.

A source tells Woike that L.A. isn’t making calls to determine Austin Reaves‘ trade value after he turned down a four-year, $89MM extension offer. The Lakers still consider Reaves to be part of the future, per Woike, and expect to sign him to a larger deal when he becomes eligible.

As for Finney-Smith, Marc Stein – who previously identified the Rockets as a leading suitor for the veteran forward – reiterates (via Twitter) that the team is believed to readying a four-year contract offer for him. That offer is expected to be worth a significant portion of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception.

Celtics Rumors: White, Horford, Kornet, Gonzalez

June 29th, 2025 at 8:02pm CST by Eli Cohen

The Celtics have had one of the busiest offseasons of any team ahead of the start of free agency, having already agreed to trade Jrue Holiday to the Trail Blazers and Kristaps Porzingis to the Hawks, and they might not be done.

With Boston still working to move off salary and create extra cap flexibility in the wake of Jayson Tatum‘s Achilles tear, Anfernee Simons, Georges Niang, and Sam Hauser have all been mentioned as trade candidates. There has also been speculation about whether Jaylen Brown or Derrick White could be moved, though Celtics vice president of basketball operations Mike Zarren made it clear in recent days that the team has not come close to trading either player.

According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link), one rival team was told the Celtics would have insisted on a “Mikal Bridges-type” package to trade White.

The Knicks’ deal for Bridges last season included five first-round picks (four unprotected), a pick swap, and a second-round pick. The Magic’s recent trade for Desmond Bane required a similar package, with Orlando sending out four unprotected picks and one pick swap along with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Cole Anthony for salary-matching purposes.

White averaged a career-high 16.4 points and 4.5 rebounds per game this past season for the Celtics, along with 4.8 assists and 1.1 blocks. He also shot 38.4% from three on a career-best 9.1 attempts per contest. The 30-year-old guard is in the first year of a four-year, $118MM contract that includes a player option in the 2028/29 season.

Here’s more on the Celtics:

Free agent center Al Horford is weighing his options and is unlikely to come to a decision right away when free agency opens tomorrow, reports Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). The Celtics have been looking into flipping newly-acquired Simons and Niang in the hopes of retaining one or both of Horford or Luke Kornet, though Horford is expected to have several suitors, including, potentially, the Knicks.
Speaking of Kornet, the veteran center proved himself a valuable rotation big man this season, averaging 6.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.0 block in just 18.6 minutes per game this season. Brian Robb of MassLive broke down the teams who might be in the mix for Kornet this summer. His list includes the Spurs and Clippers, who are expected to consider pursuing the big man, as well as the Warriors, Bucks, and Hornets, the latter of whom are in dire need of frontcourt depth after trading Jusuf Nurkic for Collin Sexton. Robb adds that there is a mutual fondness between Kornet and the team, which holds his Bird rights, but re-signing him without any additional cost-cutting moves would push the Celtics back into the second apron, which they are hoping to avoid.
In case you missed it, the Celtics reportedly sought prospects who might be willing to accept 80% of the rookie scale contract at No. 28 in the 2025 draft. The player they selected, Hugo Gonzalez, didn’t agree ahead of time to those terms, however.

Bucks Re-Sign Bobby Portis To Three-Year Deal

June 29th, 2025 at 4:10pm CST by Luke Adams

July 7: The Bucks have put out a press release officially confirming that Portis is back under contract.

June 29: The Bucks and forward/center Bobby Portis have worked out a multiyear contract agreement, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link), who reports that Portis intends to sign a three-year, $44MM pact that includes a third-year player option.

The contract will replace Portis’ $13.4MM player option for 2025/26, which he declined today in order to sign his new deal.

A reliable part of the Bucks’ frontcourt for the last five seasons, Portis earned Sixth Man of the Year votes in three of those years — he started too many games to qualify in one of the other two seasons, then only suited up a total of 49 times last season due to a 25-game suspension that cost him much of the second half.

In the suspension-shortened season, Portis averaged 13.9 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 25.4 minutes per game, with a .466/.365/.836 shooting line.

Portis recently spoke about a desire to be “compensated fairly” after accepting what he views as team-friendly contracts in recent years. While his new contract won’t give him a huge raise, it will pay him a higher annual salary than the four-year, $48.6MM deal he signed with Milwaukee in 2022.

Portis was one of two key members of the Bucks’ frontcourt eligible for free agency and had been considered more likely than fellow big man Brook Lopez to return to the team.

While Giannis Antetokounmpo trade speculation has run rampant since Milwaukee’s season ended, the two-time MVP hasn’t requested a change of scenery, so the Bucks are reportedly approaching their offseason as if he’s staying and are looking to make moves to complement him.

The terms of Portis’ contract suggest it could be finalized an extension in June rather than as a free agent deal in July. If that happens, he would remain trade-eligible rather than becoming ineligible to be dealt until December.