The Bucks added four young guns last night
Wow was I wrong on my guesses for who the Bucks were going to pick!! (Well, you have to own it, right?!) Check it out here.
The change in the coach is settled and now we can see that the Bucks might be more aggressive in turning over their roster than anyone had anticipated. And the “system” appears to be key. Now that Milwaukee has settled on its next coach in former Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin, it is important to understand what that may mean- a renewed emphasis on “turnover-less” basketball and strong defense.
It may no longer be about the three.
The NBA draft was a first stop on that journey. The Bucks, so far, have added UConn’s Andre Jackson Jr., Kentucky’s Chris Livingston, Gonzaga’s Chriss Timme, and San Jose State’s Omari Moore.
GM Jon Horst spoke after the draft.
We’re not trying to build a roster like we have in the past. He’s a different coach. We’re going to have a different system… (On Andre Jackson Jr.) He’s a swiss army knife kinda guy… he could guard 1-4 in this league… we’ve drafted two competitive, physically strong young wings that we can add to this team.
Adding some youth to an aging roster appears to be something everyone thought needed to happen, including Horst. But what may have caught Bucks fans off guard, and will for a while, is that the team will begin to de-emphasize the three in favor of the “turnover-less”, hard charging defense-style of Adrian Griffin. (See Toronto Raptors)
Related: Are the Bucks “Over the Hill”?
Why worry about three-point shooters if you don’t plan to shoot as many threes like it was expected under a Budenholzer system? It also speaks to a hint or clue that maybe Brook Lopez won’t be back.
Related: Ingles time: Should the team bring back Joe Ingles?
Free Agency Starts Next Friday
NBA Free agency Starts next Friday, June 30th. There we will really begin to see some possible big changes (the loss of Middleton or Lopez) and some possible new faces (Is the team going to target Jakob Poeltl?) What former Raptor players might Adrian Griffin want?
Will the team look to sign and trade some guys? Is Jrue Holiday still someone who could get dealt? Scoot Henderson and Anfernee Simmons for Jrue still certainly would be a substantial change after the Bucks lost in the first round of the 2023 playoffs.
Do the Bucks try to add a Dennis Smith Jr. (CHA) or a Seth Curry (Brooklyn)?
Is the team interested in pairing all of the Holiday brothers together?
Of course money will be a factor.
Milwaukee spent $178 million dollars on player salaries in 2022-2023 which put them 28 million dollars over the NBA’s luxury tax. ($150 million) The Bucks currently are $27,000,000 over the ACTIVE NBA Salary Cap. The NBA informed teams a few weeks ago that the NBA salary CAP number will go up for the 23-24 season to 134 Million dollars per team. The current CAP number is 124 million per year.
Related: Milwaukee Sign Drew Timme
Jevon Carter (player option)- Decision by Next Thursday
According to Sportrac, Carter has to decide by June 29th if he will accept his player option.
If he does, Milwaukee will certainly welcome him back. If he doesn’t, he is more than likely gone.
Now that the dust has settled on the NBA draft, it is time to look ahead to next Friday. Change has arrived in Milwaukee in the form of a new head coach and four new young players. Now it is time to see what other changes are on the way for the Milwaukee Bucks.
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