Milwaukee Bucks 2024-25 season preview: How far can Giannis and an aging core go?

(Grant Thomas/Yahoo Sports Illustration)

The 2024-25 NBA season is here! We’re breaking down the biggest questions, best- and worst-case scenarios, and fantasy outlooks for all 30 teams. Enjoy!

MILWAUKEE BUCKS

2023-24 finish

Offseason moves

Additions: Gary Trent Jr., Taurean Prince, Delon Wright, A.J. Johnson, Tyler Smith

Subtractions: Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Jae Crowder, Danilo Gallinari, Thanasis Antetokounmpo

Complete roster

The Big Question: Does depth solve Milwaukee’s woes?

Last season was a disaster. The Milwaukee Bucks hired first-time head coach Adrian Griffin, fired him a few months later and somehow finished with a much worse record under his replacement, Doc Rivers.

It was not just coaching that kept the 2021 NBA champions from winning a playoff series for the second straight season. Damian Lillard did not arrive in Milwaukee until the dawn of last season’s training camp. When he did, he was in “the worst shape I’ve ever been,” dealing with “the hardest transition of my life.” As a result, he and Giannis Antetokounmpo spent the season in search of a chemistry that never came.

Meanwhile, Lillard, Brook Lopez and Khris Middleton were all entering their mid-30s in various stages of decline, and the Bucks had no depth to support them. Things got worse when Antetokounmpo suffered a left calf strain, perhaps from carrying too great a load. It was a recipe for disaster, and they made it well.

The Bucks are pot committed to their four current and former All-Stars. The $152 million they owe to Antetokounmpo, Lillard, Middleton and Lopez left them with nothing but minimum deals to offer in free agency. Bucks GM Jon Horst did well to round out the rotation, landing Gary Trent Jr., Taurean Prince and Delon Wright, each of whom can contribute playoff minutes. Trent is first in line for a starting job.

Turn back the clock to 2021, then, right? Not so fast. Lillard, MIddleton and Lopez are not getting any younger. Middleton, 33, is the youngest of the trio, and he needed offseason surgery to both his ankles. He will be limited in training camp, same as last season, when he was rehabbing from knee surgery.

As for the…

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Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-10-03 13:09:30

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