Jrue Holiday

Raptors Notes: Lillard, Siakam, Anunoby, Barnes, Holiday

September 28th, 2023 at 10:12am CST by Arthur Hill

The Raptors were willing to part with a slew of draft assets to acquire Damian Lillard, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca, but a Western Conference source tells him they were hoping to reach a deal with the Trail Blazers that didn’t include Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby or Scottie Barnes.

Grange hears that Toronto’s offer included up to three future first-round picks, two pick swaps and rookie forward Gradey Dick. Team officials believed they could become title contenders by adding Lillard to their existing talent, but not by having him replace one of their key components.

The fact that the Raptors were involved in discussions for Lillard shows that the front office isn’t content with the team in its current form, observes Eric Koreen of The Athletic. Big decisions are coming up soon that will affect the organization’s future, and team officials will have to determine whether they’re planning to contend or rebuild.

Siakam and Gary Trent Jr. both have expiring contracts and are currently eligible for extensions. Another potential free agent next summer is Anunoby, who has a $19.9MM player option for 2024/25 that he’s expected to decline. Koreen notes that means the window is closing on a potential win-now move if the Raptors don’t do something by February’s trade deadline.

There’s more from Toronto:

The Raptors aren’t likely to pursue Jrue Holiday, who is reportedly back on the market after being sent to Portland in the Lillard deal, Grange states in the same piece. Toronto wanted Lillard to provide more spacing for Barnes and Siakam, and Holiday isn’t on the same level as an outside shooter.
The Raptors haven’t held any extension talks with Siakam, Grange adds. Siakam will become eligible for a super-max deal if he remains in Toronto and makes an All-NBA team in 2024.
In a separate story, Koreen looks at questions for every player on the Raptors’ roster, including the need for a new lead guard after the loss of Fred VanVleet in free agency. He notes that Dennis Schröder normally excels at getting into the paint, but he may find that more difficult as Toronto doesn’t have enough outside shooting to provide driving lanes.
Toronto pulled off a G League trade this week, with the Raptors 905 acquiring the rights to Denzel Valentine from the Maine Celtics in exchange for Kylor Kelley, tweets Blake Murphy of SportsNet.

Bucks Acquire Damian Lillard In Three-Team Trade

September 27th, 2023 at 9:37pm CST by Luke Adams

9:37pm: The trade is now official, the Bucks announced in a press release.

“Damian Lillard is an elite player in our league and someone we’ve long been fans of,” said general manager Jon Horst. “These opportunities are rare and hard to measure and execute. We are incredibly grateful for this opportunity for our community and team, and beyond excited to welcome Damian and his family to the Milwaukee Bucks. His character, competitiveness, talent and experience complement our group and gives us the best chance to win at the very highest level as we create new memories together.”

“These are the hardest, most human moments of this business. Jrue was unmatched in his commitment to the Bucks and the Greater Milwaukee community,” Horst said of Holiday. “He’s truly a champion on and off the court, and we are all thankful for what he and his family have given to our team and city. He and his wife Lauren were steadfast in their efforts to make a positive difference in the lives of so many people. Their leadership and dedication to the community has left an indelible mark and inspired the Bucks organization for years to come.”

1:22pm: The Bucks have reached an agreement to trade for star Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard in a blockbuster three-team deal that also includes the Suns, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter links).

According to Wojnarowski, Portland will acquire guard Jrue Holiday and an unprotected 2029 first-round pick from the Bucks, along with the right to swap first-round picks with Milwaukee in 2028 and 2030. The Blazers will also get center Deandre Ayton and rookie forward Toumani Camara from the Suns in the deal.

In exchange for Ayton and Camara, Phoenix will receive center Jusuf Nurkic, forward Nassir Little, and guard Keon Johnson from Portland, as well as wing Grayson Allen from Milwaukee, per Woj.

The massive deal is the culmination of a saga that lasted nearly three months after Lillard requested a trade out of Portland in early July. The seven-time All-Star had spent his entire 11-year NBA career with the Trail Blazers but felt that the team was no longer moving toward championship contention following consecutive lottery seasons and sought a change of scenery.

Miami was Lillard’s landing spot of choice, but reports throughout the process indicated that there was little communication between the Heat and Trail Blazers. In recent days, with the Blazers believed to be working to make a deal before the start of training camp, other Eastern Conference suitors like the Raptors and Bucks were increasingly connected to the 33-year-old.

Milwaukee ultimately emerged as the surprise winner of the Lillard sweepstakes, beating a handful of conference rivals to the punch and strengthening a core that also includes two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and standout starters Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez, both of whom signed new free agent contracts with the club this offseason.

While there have been questions about whether Lillard would be happy to report to any team besides the Heat, both he and Antetokounmpo have expressed a desire to play with one another in the past, as Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and Alex Kennedy of BasketballNews.com point out (all Twitter links). And the Bucks should put Lillard in a better position to win a championship than he ever had with the Blazers.

Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo may not be any more inclined to sign a long-term extension with the Bucks following the acquisition of Lillard than he was earlier in the offseason, given that he would benefit financially from waiting another year. However, in dealing for another star like Lillard, the Bucks’ front office proved it heard Giannis’ call for the organization to be as committed to contending for titles as he is.

The Blazers, who patiently scoured the market for most of the offseason in the wake of Lillard’s trade request, will come away from the deal with a pair of intriguing new players in Ayton and Holiday, though the big man is more likely to remain in Portland than the veteran guard.

According to Wojnarowski (Twitter link), the Blazers – who are focused on developing a young backcourt that features Shaedon Sharpe, Anfernee Simons, and this year’s No. 3 overall pick Scoot Henderson – remain engaged in trade talks involving Holiday and could flip him to a contender for additional assets.

Holiday, who can become a free agent next summer if he turns down his 2024/25 player option, recently spoke about his desire to sign a contract extension with the Bucks, but now appears destined for a new long-term NBA home. Holiday will become extension-eligible in February, though as Bobby Marks of ESPN notes (via Twitter), he won’t be able to sign a contract that exceeds the extend-and-trade limits (two new years, 5% raises) until six months after being dealt.

On the other hand, it sounds like Ayton will be a keeper for the Blazers, who have had interest in the former No. 1 overall pick in the past and were linked to him again within the last week. The 25-year-old had an up-and-down five-year stint in Phoenix that included some tension with former Suns coach Monty Williams, but he has averaged a double-double for five straight seasons, including 18.0 points and 10.0 rebounds in 30.4 minutes per game across 67 contests last season.

As for the Suns, they recognized that a player such as Ayton, who liked to have the ball in his hands, might not be an ideal fit alongside their new big three of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal, and turned the young center and his $32.5MM cap hit into a series of role players on smaller contracts, including another big man in Nurkic.

Acquiring Nurkic, Little, Allen, and Johnson will make the Suns deeper and will give them more flexibility in future trades, given that their nearly all of their non-stars had been on minimum-salary contracts. However, the move creates a bit of a roster crunch in Phoenix. The club will now have 15 players on guaranteed contracts, plus Jordan Goodwin and Ish Wainright on partially guaranteed or non-guaranteed deals. At least two of those 17 players will have to be traded or cut before the regular season tips off.

While the Suns will increase their roster count as a result of this trade, the Bucks and Trail Blazers are both sending out more players than they’re taking back. That’s especially notable for Milwaukee, which had been carrying 15 players on guaranteed salaries prior to agreeing to acquire Lillard. The Bucks now project to have an open spot on their 15-man regular season roster, which could be used to add a backup point guard.

From a cap perspective, the Bucks will take on the biggest long-term deal in the three-team trade — Lillard is under contract for four more seasons and will earn a projected $216MM during that time, while Holiday ($36.86MM) and Allen ($8.93MM) could both reach free agency next summer.

The Blazers will owe Ayton approximately $102MM over the next three years before he becomes eligible for free agency. Camara is under contract for four years, but it’s a minimum-salary deal and only the first season is guaranteed.

The Suns will take on Nurkic’s three-year contract worth $54.38MM and Little’s four-year contract worth $28MM in addition to Allen’s expiring deal. Johnson is owed a guaranteed $2.81MM salary in 2023/24 and has a $4.47MM team option that the Suns must pick up or decline by October 31, if he’s still on the roster at that point.

Jrue Holiday Rumors: Sixers, Harden, Clippers, Heat, Celtics

September 27th, 2023 at 8:24pm CST by Rory Maher

As first reported by Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports, the Sixers have interest in trading for veteran guard Jrue Holiday, who is being sent to Portland as part of the Damian Lillard blockbuster. Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer confirms Neubeck’s report, and says James Harden — who hopes to land with the Clippers — would be involved in a possible deal.

Holiday spent his first four NBA seasons with the Sixers, who selected him 17th overall back in 2009. According to Pompey’s sources, Philadelphia tried to trade for Holiday multiple times during his seven-year stint with New Orleans from 2013-20.

Moving Harden before Monday’s Media Day and next week’s training camp would avoid a messy situation, and the team has said it wants an All-Star caliber player or draft assets in return for the former MVP. As a five-time All-Defensive member and a two-time All-Star, Holiday fits that bill, Pompey notes.

A three-team deal that sends Harden to the Clippers, Holiday to the Sixers, and a first-round pick from each club to the Trail Blazers seems like it could be a good move for all parties, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, who reports that L.A. has thus far only been willing to give up one first-rounder for Harden. Still, as Fischer observes, maybe the Clippers will just end up going after Holiday instead.

The Heat are another Eastern Conference contender who have long valued Holiday, sources tell Fischer. League executives were speculating about Holiday being sent to Miami in the aftermath of the deal, Fischer adds, though it’s worth pointing out that Portland and Miami haven’t had much dialogue this offseason, despite Lillard hoping to land with the Heat.

The Celtics are expected to consider a pursuit of Holiday as well, reports Adam Himmselsbach of The Boston Globe (via Twitter). That’s an interesting, though not surprising rumor — the team has been trying to mend fences with Malcolm Brogdon, who was nearly sent to the Clippers this offseason. Brogdon ($22.5MM) would basically have to be involved in any package for Holiday ($36.86MM) for salary-matching purposes.

If the prolonged Lillard saga is any indication, Portland’s front office could be patient in looking for the best possible return for Holiday, Fischer notes.

More Lillard Trade Notes: Nets, Raptors, Grades, Holiday

September 27th, 2023 at 6:57pm CST by Rory Maher

Ten days ago, Aaron Goodwin — Damian Lillard‘s agent — privately informed the Bucks and Nets that his client would be interested in joining Milwaukee or Brooklyn, sources tell Marc J. Spears of Andscape (Twitter link). Spears also writes that the Raptors were a “real contender” for Lillard, who will reportedly land with the Bucks.

Appearing on 590 The FAN, Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca described the Raptors’ pursuit of Lillard as being less than full throttle.

“There was always interest, determination to try to get a deal but they wanted to see if they could, knowing them, without having to give up everything,” Grange said (Twitter link).

As for the Bucks, they discretely began inquiring about Lillard a couple weeks ago, league sources tell Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. Goodwill writes that Giannis Antetokounmpo and Lillard will be under a lot of pressure to bring another title to Milwaukee after going all-in, and losing Jrue Holiday‘s defense shouldn’t be ignored.

Why would Milwaukee appeal to Lillard? In addition to being on a title contender and playing with two-time MVP and 2021 Finals MVP Antetokounmpo, Lillard will also participate in more nationally televised games (19) than any other season in his career, notes Nate Jones (via Twitter), another of Lillard’s agents.

Here’s more on the three-team blockbuster between the Bucks, Trail Blazers and Suns:

In grading the deal, Kevin Pelton of ESPN (Insider link) gives both Milwaukee and Portland a B-plus, while Phoenix receives a B-minus. Pelton likes the addition of Nassir Little more for the Suns than Jusuf Nurkic, noting Nurkic’s injury history, inefficiency inside the arc and lack of mobility. Zach Harper of The Athletic has identical grades for the Suns and Blazers, but is more bullish on the Bucks’ side of the deal, giving Milwaukee an A.
Both Bill Oram of The Oregonian (subscriber link) and Mark Medina of Sportsnaut argue that the deal is a win-win for Portland and Lillard.
ESPN’s Bobby Marks provides his breakdown of the deal (YouTube link). As Marks notes, Lillard’s long-term deal is actually an insurance policy of sorts for the Bucks, since Holiday can become a free agent next summer if he turns down his player option.
Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report (Twitter link) thinks it’s inevitable that Holiday — who is heading to Portland from Milwaukee as part of the deal — will eventually be traded. However, keeping him until the trade deadline isn’t a bad option, according to Highkin, as more teams might pursue the veteran guard during the season once more players become trade-eligible.
Don’t expect the Raptors to pursue Holiday, tweets Grange. Toronto was interested in Lillard’s elite half-court offense, while Holiday isn’t on the same level at that end of the court.
Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer (Twitter link) argues the Magic should pursue Holiday, while Mike Vaccaro of The New York Post believes the Knicks should trade for the All-Defensive guard, writing that head coach Tom Thibodeau would love to have him. “Thibs and Jrue,” a longtime NBA executive texted Vaccaro, “is a marriage made in basketball heaven.”
ESPN’s panel of insiders answer big questions after the massive trade, while Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports provides three takeaways from the Suns’ perspective.

More Notes On Bucks’ Trade For Damian Lillard

September 27th, 2023 at 3:04pm CST by Luke Adams

The Damian Lillard news that we’ve been waiting for all offseason finally broke on Wednesday afternoon, as the Bucks reached an agreement to acquire the star guard from Portland in a three-team deal that will send former No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton to the Trail Blazers.

Lillard and agent Aaron Goodwin made it clear shortly after Dame asked to be traded that the 33-year-old only wanted to be dealt to Miami. Instead, he’ll end up in Milwaukee, joining one of the Heat’s biggest Eastern Conference rivals. In his first public statement since news of the deal broke, Lillard said goodbye to Portland and seemingly put to rest any speculation that he would decline to report to his new team.

“The casuals won’t be addressed but the Trail Blazers fans and city of Portland that I love truly will be … and they will be addressed truthfully. Stay tuned,” Lillard wrote on Twitter. “Excited for my next chapter! @Bucks.”

Here’s more on the Lillard trade:

The Trail Blazers didn’t re-engage with the Heat prior to accepting the Bucks’ offer on Wednesday, a league source tells Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). According to Chiang, the communication between Miami and Portland this offseason was pretty limited, and the Heat only learned about the trade when Adrian Wojnarowski broke the news.
According to Chiang (Twitter link), Goodwin put out a statement today on the Heat‘s pursuit of his client: “They did everything they could to acquire Dame. It takes two to get a deal done. I appreciate all that Pat (Riley), Andy (Elisburg) and Micky (Arison) did to try and make this happen.”
With Jrue Holiday expected to remain very available for trade after being sent to Portland, the Sixers will be among the teams with interest in acquiring him, reports Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports (Twitter link). If the 76ers were to land Holiday, I imagine it would be in a multi-team deal involving James Harden, though that’s just my speculation.
Holiday also seems to fit the mold of the type of player the Heat would covet, Chiang notes (via Twitter), though he acknowledges that the veteran guard’s market could be “robust.”
No longer having Deandre Ayton‘s long-term, maximum-salary contract on their books is considered a positive for the Suns, according to Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (Twitter link). Rankin adds that new Phoenix center Jusuf Nurkic is viewed as a good team player who buys into his role, is loved by teammates, and can help the Suns with his passing.
Shortly after the news of Lillard’s trade to Milwaukee broke, Heat star Jimmy Butler took to Instagram to send a message to the league, as ClutchPoints relays (Twitter video link). “Yo NBA, man, y’all need to look into the Bucks for tampering,” Butler said. “Y’all do. I’m just going to put that out there. Y’all didn’t hear it from me, but I heard it through somebody, y’all look at them for tampering.”
The Bucks‘ and Suns‘ championship betting odds both increased as a result of today’s trade news, per Alex Kennedy of BasketballNews.com (Twitter link). Kennedy says that one sportsbook has moved Milwaukee from +700 to +370 and Phoenix from +800 to +600.
As Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report observes (via Twitter), Lillard’s move to Milwaukee will reunite him with his former coach. The Bucks hired Terry Stotts this offseason as Adrian Griffin‘s lead assistant. Stotts was Portland’s head coach from 2012-21.

Damian Lillard Rumors: Heat, Raptors, Bucks

September 26th, 2023 at 11:43am CST by Luke Adams

While the Trail Blazers and Heat could rekindle their Damian Lillard trade discussions at some point, each team has an understanding about where the other stands, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald, who says there’s a “fundamental disagreement” between the two clubs about what a fair deal for Lillard looks like.

As Chiang explains, the reason why there has only been limited communication between Portland and Miami in the last few weeks is because a deal sending Lillard to the Heat only seems possible if one of the two teams decides to deviate from its current plan — in other words, the Blazers would have to accept much less than they want to for Lillard, or the Heat would have to offer more than they currently intend to.

A league source who spoke last week to Portland’s front office was told by the Blazers that a trade sending Lillard to Miami is “unlikely,” according to Chiang. We may find out soon whether that’s true or if it’s simply posturing.

Here’s more on Lillard:

Amid rumors that the Raptors appear to be the frontrunners to land Lillard, Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report (Twitter link) is the latest reporter to say that he’s hearing more chatter about Toronto than any other suitor as of late, though he remains wary of how seriously to take that chatter.
Whatever a Raptors offer for Lillard looks like, it won’t include 2022 Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes, league sources tell Kurt Helin of NBC Sports. Toronto’s front office loves Barnes and hasn’t made him available via trade, according to Helin, who adds, “It’s not that Toronto took him off the table — Barnes was never in the same room as the table.”
In his latest update on Lillard, Marc J. Spears of ESPN identified the Bucks, Celtics, Sixers, and Bulls as teams besides Toronto and Miami that have shown interest in Lillard since he asked to be moved. While most of those clubs have been mentioned as potential suitors this offseason, we haven’t heard much about Milwaukee. Based on their current cap situation and trade restrictions, the Bucks would almost certainly have to include Jrue Holiday in any offer for Lillard.

Jrue Holiday Says He’d “Love To” Sign Extension With Bucks

September 26th, 2023 at 10:41am CST by Luke Adams

Bucks guard Jrue Holiday is very much open to the idea of signing a contract extension that would keep him in Milwaukee beyond his current deal, he tells Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

“Would love to,” Holiday said. “Before I even won here, I think I said I’m a Buck for life and I mean that like deep in my heart. I don’t want to play for any other team. I think we have a chance to continue to do great things as the Bucks team and organization, so I want to be in Milwaukee.”

Holiday will earn a guaranteed base salary of nearly $35MM in 2023/24, with another $6MM+ available in incentives. He has a player option on his deal for the ’24/25 season, but could decline that option in order to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

Holiday will become eligible to sign an extension on February 23, and there’s a belief among NBA observers that the way the Bucks handle that situation could have a ripple effect on Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s own future in Milwaukee. In order to keep both players, the Bucks will have to keep winning — Holiday says the team’s success in recent years has increased his confidence as a player.

“Being with the Bucks, having three of the best seasons I’ve had in my career, and not only that but having a winning record, being a top team or a top-three team, I don’t think I was ever on a top three-team until I came to the Bucks,” he told Owczarski. “Growing up in the ’90s and always hearing, ‘Yeah, you’re one of the greatest if you win,’ so I’m thinking like, yeah, I’m that dude – or one of them – because of how I won, because we have won, and also because we’re on a winning team. … I knew I was good, a good basketball player, but I didn’t really give myself that credit until I was on a team that won.”

Holiday is coming off another stellar year, having earned the second All-Star berth of his career – and the first in a decade – in 2022/23. He averaged 19.3 points, 7.4 assists, and 5.1 rebounds per game in 67 appearances while claiming a spot on the All-Defensive First Team for a third time and winning his third Teammate of the Year award.

While Holiday would be eligible to receive a 40% raise (up to his maximum salary) on a new deal, the taxpaying Bucks will have to weigh how much they’re willing to offer the veteran guard, who will turn 34 next June and has generally been the third option on offense behind Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton since arriving in Milwaukee.

Middleton On Giannis’ Comments: “Business As Usual”

September 21st, 2023 at 2:39pm CST by Rory Maher

In an interview with ESPN’s Tim Bontemps, Bucks wing Khris Middleton says he wasn’t surprised to hear two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo openly discuss the possibility of leaving Milwaukee in the future if a better opportunity to win titles presents itself.

Eric Nehm of The Athletic previously wrote that the Bucks were well aware that Antetokounmpo’s foremost desire is to continue winning championships, which Middleton confirms.

“I think it’s kind of business as usual either way,” Middleton told ESPN. “It doesn’t affect me personally. I don’t think it affects us as a team. I think this is something he said almost every year he’s come up in contract extension talks.

“We always want him back for sure. Let’s be for sure and let everyone know that. We want this guy to come back because he’s one of the best players in the world. He’s one of the best players in franchise history. So when he says things like that, I think he just wants to challenge the team, the organization, to keep putting us in position to win championships.

“But I think it’s just something that he just wants to keep putting pressure on everybody. And that’s himself also. He’s not just pointing a finger at everybody else saying, ‘You guys have to do this for me.’ I think he’s putting that pressure on himself to be better, to come in and be great every year. So there’s no pressure on, there’s no added pressure when he says that to us as a team, or me as a person, that I have to be better.”

Here are a few more highlights from Bontemps’ interview with Middleton, which is worth reading in full:

A three-time All-Star, Middleton re-signed with the Bucks this offseason on a three-year deal that could be worth up to $102MM, though the base value is $93MM. He admits he wasn’t sure if he would return after the East’s No. 1 seed lost in the first round of the playoffs in 2022/23. “I didn’t have a feel of what was going to happen,” Middleton said. “I was a free agent also, (and a player) that was coming off two injuries. I didn’t know if I was going to be the one that, you know, was going to move on, or a coach or another player. I think this time it just happened to be (former head coach Mike Budenholzer), which kind of caught us by surprise a little bit. But I think we kind of knew something was going to happen. Something was going to have to change for us to get to that next level as a team, as an organization.” The Bucks hired first-time head coach Adrian Griffin to replace Budenholzer.
Bontemps brought up the team’s aging core, with Middleton (32), Jrue Holiday (33) and Brook Lopez (35) all well into their 30s. Like Middleton, Lopez re-signed with Milwaukee in free agency, inking a two-year, $48MM deal. Holiday, meanwhile, could be a free agent next summer if he declines his player option for ’24/25. Despite their advancing ages, Middleton thinks the team still has a runway to contend for titles. “I know Jrue’s a guy that he still has a lot left in the tank no matter his age. … I hope he’s excited to come back, to sign an extension and be with us for a couple more years. … I think we have a good amount of years left where we could play at a high level and be a contender. And that doesn’t happen unless we have Jrue back also.”
After being limited to just 33 regular season games last season, Middleton said he’s glad to be healthy entering ’23/24. As Bontemps outlines, Middleton had wrist surgery in the 2022 offseason and dealt with a knee injury throughout ’22/23, which eventually required surgery. “This summer’s just been kind of about getting myself back together into being back to my old, natural self, as healthy as I can be, which I think I’m headed in that direction,” Middleton said.

Bucks Notes: Giannis, Middleton, Roster, Griffin, Beasley

September 14th, 2023 at 7:30pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Over the past couple months, Bucks superstar and franchise legend Giannis Antetokounmpo has dropped hints that he might leave Milwaukee if a better winning situation presented itself. In a recent mailbag, The Athletic’s Eric Nehm tackled that topic. Nehm writes that he believes Antetokounmpo’s comments aren’t news to the organization, and that it’s something they expected when he signed a super-max contract in 2020.

The Bucks know Antetokounmpo’s No. 1 priority is winning, Nehm writes, and they’ll continue to try building a contender around him. It makes sense that Giannis would be noncommittal about signing an extension with the Bucks because it would add just two years to his deal, limiting his ability to put pressure on the organization to win now.

If Antetokounmpo signs such an extension, he wouldn’t have the ability to threaten to hit free agency, and he wouldn’t make more money in the long run, as opposed to continuing to sign super-max extensions.

Additionally, Nehm doesn’t think Antetokounmpo was taking shots at his teammates when he said he wanted to make sure “everybody’s on the same page, everybody’s going for a championship, everybody’s going to sacrifice time away from their family like I do. Nehm says that his comments seemed to just be an explanation of his approach to the game rather than a shot at anyone in the organization.

According to Nehm, two years without a championship (the Bucks won in 2021) is two years too long for their superstar.

“I thought we were going to win a championship, and it was going to be like a fairy tale and it’s done and we’re all going to be enjoying it,” Antetokounmpo told The Athletic, per Nehm. “We’re going to be partying for 15 years straight, but you win one and you’re like, ‘What’s next?’”

We have more from the Bucks:

Bucks wing Khris Middleton has been a massive part of Milwaukee’s success since joining the team in 2013/14. Appearing on an episode of J.J. Redick‘s Old Man and The Three podcast (YouTube link), Middleton discussed the dynamics of the Bucks roster as an All-Star caliber player starting next to Antetokounmpo. “There’s never been a struggle about who is one and who is two [on the roster] between us,” Middleton said.
Addressing more questions in his mailbag, Nehm takes a look at the Bucks’ roster situation, focusing on an apparent lack of depth at the point guard spot. The Bucks have utilized their two-way contracts to address the position, with Lindell Wigginton and TyTy Washington Jr. among options to take on some rotational minutes. However, Milwaukee could look to simply have Antetokounmpo or Middleton bring the ball up the court, or even Andre Jackson Jr, according to Nehm. The Bucks would be in a bad position if starting point guard Jrue Holiday went down, though, and a trade to bring in a more reliable backup could be on the horizon.
While new head coach Adrian Griffin was with the Raptors, Toronto forced turnovers on 17.2% of their opponent’s offensive possessions, according to Nehm, which is an important factor to consider when looking to Milwaukee’s defense this year. This may affect Brook Lopez, the backbone of Milwaukee’s defense, with the Bucks potentially shifting to a more perimeter-oriented defensive style while Lopez acts as more of a traditional rim-protecting center.
Malik Beasley is going to be on his fifth team heading into his eighth NBA season. According to Nehm, while Beasley’s shooting and scoring numbers look great on paper, teams generally have concerns about his defense, leading to his current journeyman status.

Lowe’s Latest: Lillard, Harden, Raptors, Bucks

September 6th, 2023 at 3:11pm CST by Luke Adams

There has been no forward momentum on the Damian Lillard front, ESPN’s Zach Lowe and Bobby Marks said on the latest episode of The Lowe Post podcast (YouTube link). The Trail Blazers guard requested a trade over two months ago, but the team doesn’t seem any closer to making a deal today than it was at the start of July.

“I’ve heard there’s been nothing. No meaningful dialogue at all,” Lowe said. “More pointedly… I just don’t think there’s been another team. If there is, I don’t know about it. That could very well the case, I may not know. But I have not heard of any other team that has really dove head-long – or even halfway – into the Dame Lillard sweepstakes.”

Marks also hasn’t heard any rumblings about any team besides the Heat that’s prepared to make a run at Lillard, and agreed that Portland and Miami don’t appear to have had substantial discussions or made any progress toward a deal.

“It’s been very quiet, certainly, from the Miami front,” Marks said. “I think the only way we hear more about Dame is if Dame makes it messy. And I don’t think Damian Lillard right now is willing to make it messy in Portland.”

Here are a few more highlights from The Lowe Post:

As is the case with the Heat and Lillard, the Clippers still appear to be the only viable suitor for Sixers guard James Harden, according to Lowe. “I know that Howard Beck and others have stated that there may be two or three other teams that have been sniffing, investigating,” Lowe said. “Certainly, if you talk to the Sixers, they have reason to say, “Oh, there’s a broad, frothy James Harden market out there.’ I really don’t think there is. I think it’s been mostly the Clippers.” However, Lowe added that the teams haven’t had “a whole lot of dialogue” in the last couple months.
While there has been some skepticism that the Clippers are able to offer the sort of package that would appeal to the Sixers for Harden, Lowe believes that Daryl Morey and the Philadelphia front office would be willing to pull the trigger if Los Angeles made the right draft assets available, since those could be flipped for an impact player. “If the Clippers were to put both (of their tradable) first-round picks in, even without (Terance Mann), I think there’s a two-team deal that exists that the Sixers would do,” Lowe said. “I don’t think the two teams have been anywhere close to any of that kind of deal, which is why I think the only play I see for the Sixers here is bring him to camp, hope…he plays pretty well, and the Clippers and some other teams with high expectations sputter over their first 20 games and get desperate.”
Lowe suggests he wouldn’t be surprised if the Raptors make some sort of move in the next six weeks, noting that the team still has multiple key players entering contract years (including Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby) and has yet to complete an extension for Gary Trent Jr. that was rumored to be close back in June. “A lot of balls in the air for the Raptors,” Lowe said.
Marks and Lowe both believe that the Bucks‘ handling of Jrue Holiday‘s contract situation when he becomes extension-eligible in February could be a crucial domino that affects Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s future. Holiday can opt out of his current contract and become a free agent next summer if he doesn’t sign a new deal before then.

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