The Milwaukee Bucks are allegedly being watched by NBA teams this summer for possible significant changes.

Matt Johnson
Revised: 21 April 2024

With Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Milwaukee Bucks went all in this past offseason in the hopes of winning the NBA Playoffs. NBA teams are allegedly closely monitoring the situation, as Milwaukee’s chances of winning the title are dwindling and it seems unlikely that the team would go past the first round.

In an effort to placate Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee made a number of adjustments over the summer. Following a 58-game winning streak and a defeat in the Eastern Conference playoff opener, head coach Mike Budenholzer was fired by the Bucks. Adrian Griffin was hand-picked by Antetokounmpo to be the new coach, but the former assistant was fired after 43 games because the Bucks’ locker room turned against him.

Giannis Antetokounmpo contract: a salary of $48.787 million in 2024–2025; a three-year extension of $186 million begins in 2025.

Over the summer, Milwaukee made a lot of changes to try to appease Antetokounmpo. The Bucks fired head coach Mike Budenholzer after a 58-game winning streak and a loss in the Eastern Conference playoff opener. Antetokounmpo personally selected Adrian Griffin to be the team’s next coach; nevertheless, the former assistant coach was let go after 43 games due to disapproval in the locker room.

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s deal calls for a salary of $48.787 million in 2024–2025 in addition to a $186 million, three-year extension starting in 2025.

Milwaukee has been in difficulty as the All-NBA forward is expected to miss the Pacers vs. Bucks series opener. There have already been speculations in the NBA about Lillard maybe wanting to go to a different area and about Antetokounmpo’s future. It seems that the NBA is asking the same concerns about Milwaukee’s long-term prospects.

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Teams from all across the league are keeping a careful eye on the Bucks when they play Indiana in the first round of the playoffs, according to senior NBA writer Zach Lowe of ESPN on a recent episode of The Lowe Post podcast. There are those in the NBA who think the Bucks could actually make some big changes if they lose.

Milwaukee Bucks: 49-33 on the current season; 58-24 on the previous one

Milwaukee’s problem would be with its change-making process. There are restrictions on the Bucks’ ability to choose players in the future and no tradeable first-round picks. Milwaukee lost some of its bench players in the deal that brought Lillard to the team prior to the start of the regular season.

Milwaukee might have little choice but to run it back the next season if there are no other options. It has happened before that new All-Star tandems take almost a year to click, and by the time they reach their second season together, a club has made tremendous progress. But Lillard’s trade value will be much less if the Bucks decide to part ways with him than it was the previous summer, when the Portland Trail Blazers had to wait months to find an acceptable deal.