Milwaukee Bucks 2018 - 2019

[homer]

Bucks hired Mike Budenholzer to be head coach per Woj Twitter Bomb.

[nate82]

Bucks hired Mike Budenholzer to be head coach per Woj Twitter Bomb.

 

[superfly]

I'm good with it if Giannis n Mids were good with it. He's got the same bloodline as Messina except actually displayed being a competent coach already, Messina totally unproven at the NBA level.

[bani1717]

Step 1: Hire a decent coach - check

Step 2: Sign LeBron

Step 3: Win a championship

[GAME05]

I guess Bud turned down the Toronto offer. Problem with Toronto is they fired their coach despite being #1 in the East and getting to the second round. Very high expectations for any new coach there--must be #1 Seed again but also at least make it to the Conference Finals. Yikes.

 

I know about nothing about head coaches, but everyone seemed to be rooting for Bud more than any other candidate. I guess that's good. No idea what his potential upside is, as well as his strengths and weaknesses.

 

Now we'll see if the Bucks can get creative in the offseason. Your third-best offensive player could potentially leave in FA, and you desperately need a defensive center despite having no cap space. Regardless of who we draft, players at #17 tend to spend time in the D-League, not show up and be a capable starter right away.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Not sure if anyone's mentioned this but the Bucks Father's Day Package is a pretty amazing deal.

 

For $80, you get two tickets to a preseason game in the new arena and all 7 legends bobbleheads they gave away this past season. Just one of those bobbles has been costing about $40 on ebay with shipping.

 

I didn't see myself forking out the cash to get to see the new arena so this will be just fine for my son and I, he won't know the difference and I'll be happy to see the place. The $80 covers both tickets and all 7 bobbles.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

I guess Bud turned down the Toronto offer. Problem with Toronto is they fired their coach despite being #1 in the East and getting to the second round. Very high expectations for any new coach there--must be #1 Seed again but also at least make it to the Conference Finals. Yikes.

 

I know about nothing about head coaches, but everyone seemed to be rooting for Bud more than any other candidate. I guess that's good. No idea what his potential upside is, as well as his strengths and weaknesses.

 

Now we'll see if the Bucks can get creative in the offseason. Your third-best offensive player could potentially leave in FA, and you desperately need a defensive center despite having no cap space. Regardless of who we draft, players at #17 tend to spend time in the D-League, not show up and be a capable starter right away.

 

The Bucks job was the #1 coaching job on the market so I'm not at all surprised he turned that down. Toronto is obviously a good team, but that's just it, good not great, and I don't think they have the talent to be great. They're expecting a coach to come in and be able to get past LeBron and it's just not going to happen with that roster.

 

I think every good coach looks at the Bucks and thinks they can do something special with Giannis. It's a testament to how bad the rest of the league thinks the team has been run.

[pacopete4]

With the new stadium, did prices of tickets go up a lot?

 

I am moving to the Milwaukee area starting this summer. Never been to an NBA game before (hockey guy) but I do root on our Bucks because well, I want any Wisconsin team to win.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

With the new stadium, did prices of tickets go up a lot?

 

I am moving to the Milwaukee area starting this summer. Never been to an NBA game before (hockey guy) but I do root on our Bucks because well, I want any Wisconsin team to win.

 

I wouldn't say they went up a ton, they're reasonable relatively speaking, but I generally don't go to the games because it's just a pain and I find the NBA pricing structure to be really jacked. I'm 50 minutes away anyway, I don't like to pay for parking so I have to walk a bit, and it's usually terrible weather. To take one of my kids to a game is going to be at least $100 most nights.

 

I won't sit in the upper bowl at the BC because I think it stinks, so some of that is self induced but it's all those things that made me just not really enjoy the BC.

 

Supposedly the new place has way fewer bad seats, but we'll see. I'm a major collector but this way I can check the place out too.

 

I'm basically limited to weekend games only due to the overall hassle of it all and since Giannis got really good those are quite expensive. It's just nothing at all like the value I get out of Miller Park where I can get 20+ games, be a SSH, tons of promotions, discounts, stuff to do for kids at the park and a bunch of extras for ~$600 a year.

[Austin Tatious]

I’m excited about Coach Bud. I haven’t seen a ton of Hawks games, but he got a lot of hype when they were doing so well with Horford and company. His resume speaks for itself. I’m feeling good about his player development and X’s and O’s.

 

The biggest problem is the handling of contracts and renewals. I think you look at contracts like Snell and Henson, and you value them about half of what they got. That’s what good teams do. If they move on, you get replacement value for those minutes at that half value budget. The big commitments only go to core players.

 

I’ve said it like ten times, but you’ve GOT to draft better than DJ Wilson. I watch a lot of Big Ten basketball and I posted that Anunoby was a much better pick than Wilson. I was positive. It proved to be true. You cannot ever let your fans know better than you on something like that.

 

If Bud can use his knowledge and experience to help our immature front office, that would help as much as anything. If he could get us a president of basketball operations who is legit, that’d be a major plus. I don’t know if the owners could agree on that, though.

[reillymcshane]

What do you think it would take for Milwaukee to trade into the top 5 in the draft?

 

This club needs someone with high upside - and they aren't going to get it at #17. They'll get another project or - at best - a solid role player.

 

I see the draft with a top tier of four guys: Luka Doncic, DeAndre Ayton, Marvin Bagley and Jaren Jackson Jr. Any of these guys could all really help Milwaukee now. After these four, it gets a bit more murky, but mock drafts tend to have a second tier of guys going next: Mohamed Bamba, Trae Young, Michael Porter and Wendell Carter.

 

My argument is that if you can move up to #5 (or higher), you position yourself to grab any of the top four guys if they fall - or get the pick of the next tier. A playmaker and scorer like Trae Young might make a huge difference for a team like Milwaukee. Or maybe the defense of Bamba.

 

And again, if someone sneaks into the top 5 - lets say someone falls in love with Bamba - well you only end up with a better selection.

 

The idea is to try and get a young (and cheap) impact player to fit into the lineup from day one - and hopefully get us from being good to very good - or great. With the salary cap limitations, I just don't see us doing much in free agency.

 

Ultimately, what would it take to move into the top 5? Obviously, you have the #17 pick. But what else could we offer up? I think Parker is gone - so the team could match any deal he is given, or if he signs the one-year tender. But is that really that big of a deal? Do you deal Brogdan if you can get a guy like Trae Young? Is moving up even possible?

 

I'm not that knowledgeable about the NBA to feel like I can make accurate guesses - so I was curious how others felt about the idea.

[nate82]

The Bucks can't trade their pick this year until draft day due to the possibility that their pick next year could be traded to the Suns.

 

The best option would be a sign and trade Parker but I am not sure anyone in the top 5 would want Parker. The only other option is Middleton or Giannis.

[homer]

I think I'd rather they try and trade for a future first rounder. Not sure who is a good trade partner but I'd like future assets rather than trying trade up this year.

[reillymcshane]

I think I'd rather they try and trade for a future first rounder. Not sure who is a good trade partner but I'd like future assets rather than trying trade up this year.

I've read that this year's draft is pretty deep. Not sure if that changes anything.

[coolhandluke121]

The Bucks can't trade their pick this year until draft day due to the possibility that their pick next year could be traded to the Suns.

 

The best option would be a sign and trade Parker but I am not sure anyone in the top 5 would want Parker. The only other option is Middleton or Giannis.

 

I don't think there's any way a team gives up a major asset for Parker and gives him his next contract. He's just an empty stats scorer even without the injury risk, let alone with two ACL tears.

 

The Bucks can certainly trade their pick any time they want if they acquire a first-rounder this year in return, e.g. trading up as was suggested here. The best way to understand the rule is to know that a trade is not allowed if it could theoretically leave them without a first-rounder (theirs or anyone else's) in two consecutive future drafts.

 

I don't see them being able to trade up into the top-5, and I doubt they want to take a huge step backwards by trading Khris. I could see them coming up with a package involving Bledsoe+ to the Cavs or Knicks for 8/9, or Bledsoe to LAC for one of their late lotto picks. Jabari *might* fetch a pick in the teens, but is more likely to be disappointed in the low-ball offers he gets, eventually signing one that the Bucks will match or working out a sign-and-trade for a serviceable vet or two. His attitude will be a big question mark when he gets that reality check.

 

I really like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Mikal Bridges to improve the athleticism and perimeter defense if the Bucks do manage to move up a few slots. I don't like the options in the late teens as much and don't think they can afford to trade enough good players to get a top pick who might not help for a few years anyway.

[Baldkin]

The Bucks can't trade their pick this year until draft day due to the possibility that their pick next year could be traded to the Suns.

 

The best option would be a sign and trade Parker but I am not sure anyone in the top 5 would want Parker. The only other option is Middleton or Giannis.

 

They can't sign and trade Jabari for a draft pick (this season)

 

The signing moratorium doesn't end until 2 weeks after the draft.

[patrickgpe]

I'm late to the game, but this is the best hire since Karl, who was hired 20 years ago. The bucks had to go into the new arena with a big hire. Also Bud will (most likely) be the coach through Giannis' remaining contract years. This is why this is HUGE. You need a guy that can get every bit out of every player as well as someone that free agents will want to play for. I think the bucks did that.

 

While there were some assistants that I liked like Nurse or Messina out there, thats a hard sell for where the team is. No other retreads really appealed to me. They had to hit a homer and they did.

[superfly]

I'd rather package that pick with one/more of Snell, Dellavadova, or Henson and clear salary cap if there's a way to do it. And then don't sign overpaid middlers again like a bunch of morons.

 

 

Kenneth Faried is an expiring next year and is a decent match for all three of their salaries...Denver doghoused him and I think he might be a good A+ effort type of guy that we need more of.

 

Skal Labissiere might be another option, the Kings have been known to make dumb decisions. Maybe could give them the 1st and Henson for Skal and Koufos or something.

 

I'm sure there's more appealing options out there, but there isn't a golden goose sitting out there for us...we might have to take a risk of eating the paper bad end of a deal to see if we can find a better fit (than drafting another DJ Wilson scrub in the high teens).

[reillymcshane]

 

I really like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Mikal Bridges to improve the athleticism and perimeter defense if the Bucks do manage to move up a few slots. I don't like the options in the late teens as much and don't think they can afford to trade enough good players to get a top pick who might not help for a few years anyway.

From what I've seen in the mocks, both those guys will likely be gone. As you say, we'd have move up a few slots.

[coolhandluke121]

 

I really like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Mikal Bridges to improve the athleticism and perimeter defense if the Bucks do manage to move up a few slots. I don't like the options in the late teens as much and don't think they can afford to trade enough good players to get a top pick who might not help for a few years anyway.

From what I've seen in the mocks, both those guys will likely be gone. As you say, we'd have move up a few slots.

 

For sure. I think the Cavs, Knicks, and Clippers would all be interested in trading for Bledsoe. The problem is that the Bucks are probably trying to get better next year, and trading Bledsoe for a rookie doesn't help in the short term.

 

For me, I think it's really important to take this opportunity to retool in the new coach's vision. You always get a brief honeymoon period in which you cau make changes for the long run and get players and fans to buy in, but that runs out fast. For example, the Bucks made a huge mistake when they hired Skiles/Hammond and promptly traded for RJ instead of trading Redd and rebuilding for a year or two. It was a golden opportunity to take a step backwards in hopes of taking 2 steps forward later. Redd already had some "minor" knee problems and we know how that turned out. I really hope they trade Bledsoe and Jabari for injury reasons alone, not to mention the fact that they're not great fits.

[OnaBadger58]

I'm really interested in Donte DiVincenzo. Great athlete is at worst, imo, is a 3&D player that the Bucks are looking for.

[coolhandluke121]

I'm really interested in Donte DiVincenzo. Great athlete is at worst, imo, is a 3&D player that the Bucks are looking for.

 

Sure. Good all-around player and very likely to be a solid rotation player, while still having some upside. He was impressive against the Badgers as a freshman in the NCAA tournament as well. The NBA is trending more toward that type of solid all-around player, as opposed to specialists.

[patrickgpe]

The player i would like most is Robert Williams, unfortunately I think that the bucks pick a few picks too late to get him. So the players I am looking at are Khyri Thomas or Gary Trent Jr In addition to DiVincenzo. Id probably prefer the 2 big east guys. There 2 biggest needs are a shooter and a big. Since I don't see a good option at the 5, I really hope they look long and hard at a shooter.

[young guns]

Golden State vs Cleveland again. Yawn.

[adambr2]

Golden State vs Cleveland again. Yawn.

 

The NBA sucks so much.