After winning the NBA (National Basketball Association) Championship in the 2020-21 season, the Milwaukee Bucks have failed to reach the conference finals and have been eliminated in the opening round in the past two seasons.
This drought is concerning and something that Bucks fans should be aware of with two-time MVP (Most Valuable Player) Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future in Milwaukee potentially in jeopardy.
Their core pieces are aging and have injury histories. Antetokounmpo is 29 and not getting any younger. Khris Middleton has only played 154 games out of a possible 246 games in a span of 3 years and has been riddled with injuries and received surgery on both ankles in the offseason.
The make-or-break 2024-25 season for the Bucks rides heavily on the presence of guard Damian Lillard. While Lillard was an All-Star starter in the east, it took the 8-time All-Star a while to adjust to Milwaukee.
Amidst the trade rumors in the 2023 offseason, according to the Athletic’s Alex Andrejev report on Lillard’s offseason timeline, “Lillard did not practice with the Portland Trail Blazers during his trade request period.” With that and adjusting to a new city and team, Lillard will hopefully be a better fit with a year under his belt in Milwaukee.
It’s hard to make predictions on the upcoming season based on last year’s 49-33 record and first-round exit. This is due in large part to Adrian Griffin’s impact, or should I say lack of impact, as head coach for the first 43 games of the season last year.
While the Bucks were 30-13 during Griffin’s reign as coach, his tenure was shaky and he could never earn the trust of the team. According to CBS Sports Jack Maloney, Griffin yelled at assistant coach at the time, Terry Stotts, in front of the team for talking to Lillard and Antetokounmpo during a shootaround in Oklahoma City before their preseason game.
Griffin had asked coaches to “meet by themselves while the players did individual shooting.” Due to the incident, Stotts resigned immediately, leaving the team after only being hired months prior.
We never got to see the offensive-minded coach, who led the Trail Blazers to six winning seasons in his nine-year tenure from 2012-21, work with his former guard Lillard who was on the team for all of his tenure working together once again.
Alongside Stotts leaving, Griffin could never connect with his team, creating a lack of leadership and ownership in the locker room, and causing Bucks veterans to step up vocally. According to Maloney’s CBS Sports report, The Bucks veterans early in the season had to create an intervention for Griffin as his defensive scheme allowed 130 points to the Toronto Raptors.
During Griffin’s tenure, the Bucks went from fourth in Defensive efficiency in 2022-23 to 22nd in 2023-24. The Bucks were also 20th in points per direct drive after ranking second in 2022-23.
While the Bucks were still able to be successful during his stint, they heavily relied on Lillard and Antetokounmpo’s All-Star seasons and had poor metrics that were not going to hold up in the long run and propel the Bucks to a Championship.
Just a day after Griffin was dismissed, long-time Head Coach Doc Rivers was brought in because of his winning past, which contained a .588 winning percentage, and his leadership. The Bucks were never able to get their footing with Rivers at the helm, finishing the last 36 games with a losing record at 17-19.
As the third seed, the Bucks fell to the Indianapolis Pacers in six games. Antetokounmpo strained his left calf in game two and missed the rest of the series and Lillard missed games four and five with a right Achilles tendon injury.
In the offseason, the Bucks had holes in their roster, especially at the guard and wing bench positions. With the departure of guard Malik Beasley, who ended up signing with the Detroit Pistons, the Bucks were in need of a new starting shooting guard.
First, they added to their depth by infusing young talent from the draft. They took 19-year-old guard AJ Johnson 23rd overall out of the NBL in Australia and Forward Tyler Smith 33rd overall out of the G-League Ignite. It’s not a promise the young and raw rookies will get regular-season playing time, but they will get the opportunity to learn from the veterans and to gain experience.
On July 16, the Bucks were able to nab 26-year-old guard Gary Trent Jr. to a one-year minimum deal. Trent should be able to match Beasley’s offensive production last year with 13.7 points averaged per game and a 39.3 three-point percentage last year with the Toronto Raptors.
Earlier in the offseason (in need of a backup point guard), the Bucks signed veteran Delon Wright to a one-year deal. The Bucks were last in opponent turnovers last year and the signing of Wright should help in that field as he is in the 94th percentile for creation turnover percentage and 96th for deflections.
Nine-year veteran Taurean Prince was also signed to a one-year deal. Prince carries a career 37.6 three-point percentage and will bring length, catch and shooting prowess to the Bucks’ bench.
The Bucks, in what was a successful offseason, were able to make smart value signings with guys who will be able to bring versatility. I think Lillard getting his feet wet in Milwaukee and the coaching staff will help him improve even more in the system alongside Giannis. If they are able to connect and play off of each other more they could brew something special in 2024-25.
If the Bucks’ core players can stay healthy and they can develop their younger inexperienced guys, they are in for a potentially big season.
Benes can be reached at @[email protected].
