In the span of the past two years, the Milwaukee Bucks have made two trades that saw them bid farewell to two members of the “Big Three” that helped them when the NBA Championship in 2021. The first was trading point guard Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trailblazers for Damian Lillard, one of the best players of all time and a member of the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. This trade, of course, happened immediately prior to the 2023-24 season.
The second happened during the season last year when Milwaukee sent Khris Middleton to the Washington Wizards for Kyle Kuzma.
The difference in the way both of these trades were received by fans could not be any different. While Bucks fans were sad to see Holiday leave, the idea of seeing Lillard paired with Giannis Antetokounmpo was exciting.
But while Milwaukee desperately needed to shed Middleton’s salary, Bucks fans were not very happy that Kuzma was the player they received in return.
Kyle Kuzma Has Frustrated Milwaukee Bucks Fans Ever Since He Arrived
In the days leading up to the NBA trade deadline last season, many assumed that Middleton was going to get traded. He battled injuries for several years and carried a massive salary cap hit, which kept the Bucks from adding talent. However, fans had hoped that Milwaukee would get a good return for him.
But they got Kuzma, and had to throw in exciting rookie AJ Johnson to boot in order to convince the Wizards to take on Middleton’s salary.
Before the trade, Kuzma, who won the NBA Finals in 2020 with the Los Angeles Lakers, was averaging 15.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.5 assists for Washington. He was also shooting 42/28/60 from the floor.
After the trade, despite playing more minutes per game and seeing his shooting numbers improve to 46/33/66, Kuzma averaged 14.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game.
His inability to shoot consistently, as well as his mistakes on defense and poor ball handling, made him a source of frustration among Bucks fans. They wanted to see Milwaukee trade him this offseason, and the Bucks did try, but they could not find any suitors, or least any offers that were realistic.
Milwaukee Bucks Forward Kyle Kuzma Is Taking Damian Lillard’s Number 0
Earlier this offseason, the Bucks decided to waive and stretch Lillard, who is going to miss most (if not all) of the upcoming season with a torn Achilles. Doing this allowed them the financial flexibility to make other moves, including the signing of Myles Turner and other outside free agents.
And with Lillard gone, Kuzma has decided to switch his jersey number from #18 to #0. And Bucks fans are not happy:
Makes sense https://t.co/nc2iHbFy2G pic.twitter.com/EwwcphlRIH
— Landon (@surelando) July 29, 2025
Are we serious right now https://t.co/kYSStSsUHi pic.twitter.com/1St9qhmaoy
— 🥤 (@34for2) July 29, 2025
— Nathan Marzion (@nathanmarzion) July 29, 2025
I’m convinced there’s not a single thing Kuz could do that wouldn’t piss me off https://t.co/dh3wZaTyYR
— Socialist Bucks (@socialistbucks) July 29, 2025
Prior to Lillard, former Bucks first round pick MarJon Beauchamp had worn jersey number 0.
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