2025-26 Milwaukee Bucks / NBA Thread

[Joseph Zarr]

The Doctor was cooking at Boston today. Pressing all the right buttons. This Bucks squad is running hawt. 11 games under now and the Tank feels as strong as it has ever been. They have the right commander. They have the personnel. It's like we have leapt back to the days of yore real quick like. You can say what you want about Jimmy Haslam, but he's been a part of winners everywhere he's gone in pro sports.

[adambr2]

I know it’s not going to change anything. 

But, can anyone give any rational reason why Doc Rivers still has a job coaching the Bucks? 

This team is going down the toilet. Obviously, he’s not going to be the guy once this era of hell is over with. So what’s the point?

Only 4 possibilities I can think of at this point:

1) They’d prefer to tank anyway, what’s the point of winning right now.

2) It seems silly to put yet another HC on payroll.

3) We have to at least feign an effort to show the next guy that he’s going to have some sort of job security and not become the Cleveland Browns of the NBA where nobody even wants the job.

4) Giannis for whatever crazy reason wants him to stay.

[Yaz19]

Coach Bud got a raw deal. 

The NBA is a different kind of animal when it comes to 'pro' sports.   All I ever see for news is click bait.  Why are there not reports about the players  & team going in in-depth on stats / performance?  What in the world is AJ Green doing as a starter?  I have only been casually following the Bucks this season and when I go to look at box scores he plays lots of minutes but doesn't score crap.   What the heck is that all about?   And when I look at the reserves to see who could replace him there is NOTHING there.   What in the world happened to this team?  Took 2 + years for this franchise to sink back to irrelavance.    

FIRE RIVERS!  My god this is insanity!

(Sorry for this post being rather disjointed - it is a rant and is meant to be that way :-) )

[nate82]

45 minutes ago, Yaz19 said:

What in the world is AJ Green doing as a starter?

Because he is the 4th or 5th option on the team for scoring.  His job is to play defense and shoot 3's.  It works when Giannis is on the court but when he is not then you have a team of #4 and #5 scoring options.  The problem with the Bucks is that they don't have a #2 or #3 scorer on the team they have a bunch of guys who are a #4 or #5 scorer. 

 

47 minutes ago, Yaz19 said:

FIRE RIVERS!  My god this is insanity!

Firing Rivers doesn't really do anything.  If the Bucks fire Rivers tomorrow the team will still be bad.  I am not a fan of Rivers at all and really it isn't his fault the team is so flawed.  Though giving Rivers better players really wouldn't help either.  So keeping Rivers right now basically allows the Bucks to tank which is what the Bucks really need to do. 

 

52 minutes ago, Yaz19 said:

What in the world happened to this team?

Bad drafting and bad trades giving away picks for horrible players.  Other than Lillard I can't think of any trade that was even a slight positive for the Bucks.

 

If the Bucks are going to compete with Giannis they need a #2 scorer behind him otherwise it doesn't matter what the Bucks do going forward.  The Bucks could keep Giannis but if they don't get a #2 scorer behind him it won't matter.  The best option for the Bucks right now is to trade Giannis and start over.  Will it be painful?  Oh yes it will be but at some point you have to do this or just continue to watch the Bucks into mediocrity until Giannis retires or requests a trade.  

 

[adambr2]

My head says trade Giannis and my heart says tank and try to get a high pick and get him some help in the draft and reload next year without Doc.

And I’m not one to get sentimentally attached to any player. I wanted Braun traded in 2016 and wanted Rodgers traded to the Broncos when we wanted to hold and they gave up a haul for Wilson instead.

[sveumrules]

Here's my attempt to rank potential Giannis offers. Did my best at ballpark salary matching (insert Thansis or whatever other low dollar vets needed on either side for the math to line up) while also trying to figure out which teams have what picks that are actually tradable...

LEGIT CONTENDER TIER

(OKC) Hartenstein ($28.5M) one of Dort ($18.2M) or Caruso ($18.1M) and Topic ($5.2M)
PICKS : Clippers 2026 1st, Rockets 2026 1st, 76ers 2026 1st, 2027 swap, 2027 Clippers swap, Nuggets 2027 1st, 2028 1st, 2028 Mavericks swap, 2029 swap, Nuggets 2029 1st, 2030 1st, 2031 swap, 2032 1st
[could offer a smorgasbord of various picks and swaps to pair up SGA with Giannis]

(SAS) Vassell ($27M) Barnes ($19M) Harper ($12.4M)
PICKS : 2026 Hawks swap, Hawks 2027 1st, 2028 swap, Celtics 2028 swap, 2029 1st, 2030 swap, 2031 1st, 2031 Sacramento swap, 2032 swap
[nice collection of picks and swaps at the Spurs disposal if they want to team up Giannis and Wemby for a monster front court]

(HOU) Sengun ($33.9M) Adams ($14.1M) Eason ($5.7M)
PICKS : 2027 1st, 2027 Suns 1st, 2027 Nets swap, 2028 swap, 2029 1st, 2029 swap (convoluted), 2030 swap, 2031 1st, 2032 swap
[kind of have to include Sengun to make salaries work and because of potential fit issues with Giannis since he doesn't have much of an outside game either. Alperen would probably be the best win now kind of piece the Bucks could get back. 2027 Nets swap could be juicy]

(DET) Tobias ($26.6M) Stewart ($15.0M) Holland ($8.7M)
PICKS : 2026 1st, 2027 swap, 2028 1st, 2029 swap, 2030 1st, 2031 swap, 2032 1st
[from what I can tell the Pistons control all their FRPs. Don't think they'd send the whole stash but maybe something like the four actual firsts or the 2028-32 run. The three players in the trade are currently 5th, 6th and 7th on the team in minutes so would eat into their depth a bunch.]

BORDERLINE CONTENDERS AND/OR HAVE THE DRAFT CAPITAL TIER

(TOR) Barrett ($27.7M) Poeltl ($19.5M) Murray-Boyles ($6.3M)
PICKS : 2026 1st, 2027 swap, 2028 1st, 2029 swap, 2030 1st, 2031 swap, 2032 1st
[believe the Raptors also control their full stash of FRPs]

(CHA) LaMelo ($40M) Miller ($12M) Salaun ($7.8M)
PICKS : 2026 1st, 2026 1st (convoluted), 2027 swap, Mavs 2027 1st (with protections), Heat 2027 1st (with protections), 2028 1st, 2029 swap, 2029 1st (convoluted), 2030 1st, 2031 swap, 2032 1st
[the Hornets have all their own firsts plus four more incoming so could offer a haul plus maybe the best collection of young salary matchers while still keeping Kon. Former Bucks assistant Charles Lee is the current head coach for whatever that is or isn't worth]

(BRK) Claxton ($25.3M) Mann ($15M) Denim ($6.9M)
PICKS : 2026 1st, Knicks 2027 1st, 2028 1st, 76ers 2028 1st (with protections), 2029 swap, Knicks 2029 1st, 2029 1st (convoluted), 2030 1st, 2031 swap, Knicks 2031 1st, 2032 1st
[could probably put together the best collection of picks and swaps for Giannis and get him to New York City or thereabouts. Pair him with MPJ and I try to build it from there]

(POR) Grant ($32M) Thybulle ($11.6M) Sharpe ($8.4M)
PICKS : 2028 Bucks swap, 2028 1st, 2028 Magic 1st, 2029 swap, 2029 Bucks 1st, 2030 1st, 2030 Bucks swap, 2031 swap, 2032 1st
[fringe contender in the West at the moment, but would reunite Giannis with old buddy Jrue (& Dame next year) and could get the Bucks some of their own draft capital back. If they could pry Deni Avidja instead of Sharpe things could get more interesting]

(CHI) Collins ($18M) Huerter ($18M) White ($12.9M) Buzelis ($5.5M)
PICKS : Trail Blazers 2026 1st (protections), 2026 1st, 2027 swap, 2028 1st, 2029 swap, 2030 1st, 2031 swap, 2032 1st
[looks like the Bulls are another team with all their FRPs plus one from POR with protections. Buzelis might be the highest upside young player they could realistically get for Giannis, but would be wild to trade him to the Bulls. Maybe he could sublet Counsell's place?]

MEDIA WET DREAM NARRATIVE (AKA PLEASE NO) TIER

(GSW) Green ($25M) Kuminga ($22M) Podziemski ($3.7M)
PICKS : 2026 1st, 2027 swap, 2028 1st, 2029 swap, 2031 swap, 2032 1st
[they've been trying to talk this one into existence but I don't see the Warriors having the necessary assets for what I'd deem a competitive offer anyway] 

(MIA) Herro ($31M) or Wiggins ($28.2M) plus Rozier ($26.6M) and Ware ($4.4M)
PICKS : 2028 swap, 2029 1st, 2030 swap, 2031 1st, 2032 swap
[another team that keeps coming up but also appears to have a pretty underwhelming collection of assets to realistically offer]

(NYK) KAT ($53.1M) or Bridges ($24.9M) Hart ($19.5M) Robinson ($13M)
PICKS : 2030 swap, 2032 swap
[after trading their 2027, 2029, 2031 firsts to BKN (plus a swap in 2028) don't think the Knicks really have close to enough ammunition to make a competitive Giannis offer without getting creative and somehow re-shaping their roster for more future assets]

(DAL) Davis ($54.1M)
PICKS : 2026 1st, 2029 Lakers 1st, 2031 1st, 2032 swap
[reunite Giannis with Kidd and give Cooper Flagg a superstar to play with while Davis get passed around again. Maybe could pry Max Christie ($7.7M) in the deal too as a young asset but would probably have to throw in some more to make the money work then.]

[patrickgpe]

On 1/30/2026 at 1:57 PM, homer said:

Bucks must be in tank mode. No way any respectable team would keep Doc on at this point.

they are paying for 3 head coaches currently. If they want to give the reigns to Joerger  I would be fine with that though. 

[sveumrules]

13 minutes ago, patrickgpe said:

they are paying for 3 head coaches currently. If they want to give the reigns to Joerger  I would be fine with that though. 

Believe the extension Bud signed after the Championship ran through the 2024-25 season, so he should be off the books at this point. 

All I could find with a quick search on Griffin was that it was a multi year contract. If it was a three year deal, then he would be off the books after this season as well. 

Looks like Doc's contract runs through the upcoming 2026-27 season. 

[jay87shot]

I am kind of liking a GSW trade more and more, obviously other teams have better young talent but from what I have read GSW and Minny  have been the team mentioned recently (probably Knicks, Portland as well) that seem really interested. GS told Jimmy Butler he is staying put but I think this 3 team deal could work.

GSW= Giannis, Boston=Draymond We get=Simons, Kuminga, Pod, Boston 2026 1st, 4 1st from GSW

We get 2 young players and cap relief from Simons, and 5 total 1st, the 1st couple GSW picks are probably trash but if we could get like there 2031/32 picks (swap) those could be really good. This would also be dependant on another team want to take a chance on Draymond. I think for the Celtic they need some big guy help and Draymond would fit well potentially into that roster.

I still like the idea of other teams better but am warming up to Golden State

The heat might be my leaders right now however. If we could do something like this

Miami=Giannis, KPJ, Thanasis  Atlanta=Herro  Us= Porzingis (trade after deal), Ware, Rozier, Jakukonious, NO 1st from Atl, 2028 Atl 1st (confusing triple swap already), 2 1st Heat 2028/2030 and 2 swaps with heat 2029/2031       We would get 2 young players, lots of cap relief (depending on what we could get for Porzingis) and a boatload of picks. The Heat would be taking on a lot of risk especially without a ton of backcourt depth but KPJ, Powell, Wiggins, Jaquez, Giannis, Bam would compete with anyone in the East. Herro would be a huge add for the Hawks and the shooting would fit well into there young core.

[patrickgpe]

1 hour ago, sveumrules said:

Believe the extension Bud signed after the Championship ran through the 2024-25 season, so he should be off the books at this point. 

All I could find with a quick search on Griffin was that it was a multi year contract. If it was a three year deal, then he would be off the books after this season as well. 

Looks like Doc's contract runs through the upcoming 2026-27 season. 

I doubt Doc would want to return next season nor would the Bucks want him to. He came here to coach Dame and Giannis and win a ring. None of that is happening. Its been a while since I looked at their contracts but my point is, changing coaches now does little to help the team in 2026.

[patrickgpe]

1 hour ago, jay87shot said:

I am kind of liking a GSW trade more and more, obviously other teams have better young talent but from what I have read GSW and Minny  have been the team mentioned recently (probably Knicks, Portland as well) that seem really interested. GS told Jimmy Butler he is staying put but I think this 3 team deal could work.

GSW= Giannis, Boston=Draymond We get=Simons, Kuminga, Pod, Boston 2026 1st, 4 1st from GSW

We get 2 young players and cap relief from Simons, and 5 total 1st, the 1st couple GSW picks are probably trash but if we could get like there 2031/32 picks (swap) those could be really good. This would also be dependant on another team want to take a chance on Draymond. I think for the Celtic they need some big guy help and Draymond would fit well potentially into that roster.

I still like the idea of other teams better but am warming up to Golden State

The heat might be my leaders right now however. If we could do something like this

Miami=Giannis, KPJ, Thanasis  Atlanta=Herro  Us= Porzingis (trade after deal), Ware, Rozier, Jakukonious, NO 1st from Atl, 2028 Atl 1st (confusing triple swap already), 2 1st Heat 2028/2030 and 2 swaps with heat 2029/2031       We would get 2 young players, lots of cap relief (depending on what we could get for Porzingis) and a boatload of picks. The Heat would be taking on a lot of risk especially without a ton of backcourt depth but KPJ, Powell, Wiggins, Jaquez, Giannis, Bam would compete with anyone in the East. Herro would be a huge add for the Hawks and the shooting would fit well into there young core.

ESPN proposed this, I can get behind it assuming you can buyout or trade Jimmy Buckets. Trades to Atlanta or Philly that involve Johnson or Edgecombe respectively intrigue me. 

 

Golden State Warriors get:

Giannis Antetokounmpo
Myles Turner

Milwaukee Bucks get:

Jimmy Butler III
Jonathan Kuminga
Brandin Podziemski
2026 first-round pick
2028 first-round pick
2030 first-round pick (if 1-20)
2031 first-round swap
2032 first-round pick

[sveumrules]

1 minute ago, patrickgpe said:

I doubt Doc would want to return next season nor would the Bucks want him to. He came here to coach Dame and Giannis and win a ring. None of that is happening. Its been a while since I looked at their contracts but my point is, changing coaches now does little to help the team in 2026.

Yeah, no reason to change coaches now. Let Doc ride the tank out for the rest of this year while internally searching for the best up and comer to replace him next season.

Would love it if they did the same thing with Horst, let him tinker around the edges at the deadline if he can get any future assets for Kuzma or Portis while the owners take the next few months to figure out a GM replacement who can execute the Giannis trade in the offseason.

Guess we'll see how things play out in that regard over the next few days. If a good enough offer comes in I'm fine with dealing Giannis now and being done with the whole thing too, but if Horst takes a poo poo platter to placate the media mob and league office...well I guess I'm prepared for that eventuality too.

 

[wallus]

If the Bucks blow this trade, I might check out for a while. I am a big fan but I need something to hope on. Getting the trash from GSW would not do that.

[jay87shot]

42 minutes ago, wallus said:

If the Bucks blow this trade, I might check out for a while. I am a big fan but I need something to hope on. Getting the trash from GSW would not do that.

I agree, there are a lot of things that need to change to get excitment back into the team. I will still always keep track and watch games when I see they are on, however I likely won't make any plans to watch games maybe other than a big rookies 1st game or something like that.

[jay87shot]

3 hours ago, patrickgpe said:

ESPN proposed this, I can get behind it assuming you can buyout or trade Jimmy Buckets. Trades to Atlanta or Philly that involve Johnson or Edgecombe respectively intrigue me. 

 

Golden State Warriors get:

Giannis Antetokounmpo
Myles Turner

Milwaukee Bucks get:

Jimmy Butler III
Jonathan Kuminga
Brandin Podziemski
2026 first-round pick
2028 first-round pick
2030 first-round pick (if 1-20)
2031 first-round swap
2032 first-round pick

I could get on board with that, as you said we would need a place to send Jimmy.

[Joseph Zarr]

7 hours ago, sveumrules said:

Yeah, no reason to change coaches now. Let Doc ride the tank out for the rest of this year while internally searching for the best up and comer to replace him next season.

Would love it if they did the same thing with Horst, let him tinker around the edges at the deadline if he can get any future assets for Kuzma or Portis while the owners take the next few months to figure out a GM replacement who can execute the Giannis trade in the offseason.

Guess we'll see how things play out in that regard over the next few days. If a good enough offer comes in I'm fine with dealing Giannis now and being done with the whole thing too, but if Horst takes a poo poo platter to placate the media mob and league office...well I guess I'm prepared for that eventuality too.

 

Reading that last paragraph - and knowing that is absolutely possible with the Bucks org and their top notch basketball ops 'think tank'; "Hey I know we're going to fire Doc and his coaching staff and Horts this off season BUT let's let them deal the best asset we've seen wear a Bucks uniform in over 50 years! Strike while the iron is hawt!" - well, it has me all

[Joseph Zarr]

Ok. Beyond this trade deadline nonsense (apparently the Cavs GM let his children make a trade with the Clippers), and back to Bucks basketball...

The sidebar storyline we are witnessing in real time: Pete Nance might actually be a good rotation NBA player...is bananas. He plays smart. He picks his spots. He can shoot. He can slash - he understands timing and spacing. He's meaningfully active. Was not on my Bingo card! In a forgettable season, this is a bright spot beyond the Ryan Rollins storyline.

[TwinsBrewersWorldSeries]

Who is Pete Nance?

[patrickgpe]

44 minutes ago, TwinsBrewersWorldSeries said:

Who is Pete Nance?

I know he is Larry Nance's kid. I think he was in Oshkosh on a 2 way deal. 

[jay87shot]

45 minutes ago, patrickgpe said:

I know he is Larry Nance's kid. I think he was in Oshkosh on a 2 way deal. 

I like his game, I don't think he would be much more than an effort 8th/9th man ever. However he shoul be playing a lot more than Jerricho Sims, who has no basketball skills other than being tall and jumping.

[jay87shot]

Would we be able to get a 2nd round pick for AJ Green? If we get rid of Giannis, Green doesn't have any value to me as a guy who stands around the 3 point line and plays mediocre defense at best. On certain teams as a 3 point specialist he could have some appeal.

Green to the Lakers for Maxi Kleber and a 2nd. We shed future salary and get a 2nd, the Lakers get a sniper for Luka and LeBron.

[patrickgpe]

If they move Giannis (i am way less certain of that happening by tomorrow as I was even over last weekend) then Bucks should also move any player that they can get a future asset for.

[wallus]

19 minutes ago, patrickgpe said:

If they move Giannis (i am way less certain of that happening by tomorrow as I was even over last weekend) then Bucks should also move any player that they can get a future asset for.

They should do that regardless.

[CheezWizHed]

Yes, if Giannis moves, it is fire-sale time.  Next year, take on bad contracts for draft picks, then work on building it back up. 

Rollins would be the one I'm on the fence about... but if we are tearing down, it might still make sense for a good return. 

[patrickgpe]

12 minutes ago, wallus said:

They should do that regardless.

agreed.