The Milwaukee Bucks have limited resources to use in 2017 NBA free agency. Who are five cheap options to targets on July 1?
The Milwaukee Bucks have the most important thing for a young team to have — a superstar. Giannis Antetokounmpo is tall, long, athletic and young enough that his best years are still to come. He is an offensive force and one of the league’s best defenders and he’s about to start an extension that will pay him well below market value.
The Bucks also have complementary young players that fit well together, from Khris Middleton as a two-way wing to Malcolm Brogdon as a long point guard defender to Thon Maker as a high-upside center who fits the modern profile. If Jabari Parker returns from injury fully healthy, this team has a nasty starting five.
The team has also leveraged its draft assets to fill out the bench, adding D.J. Wilson and Sterling Brown as inexpensive talent that can stretch the floor and defend. While their contributions are going to come further down the line, they seem to be solid pieces to have in the fold.
Where the Bucks have to turn this offseason is to shoring up the margins of the roster. The team unfortunately has a number of contracts handed out to players with middling contributions at best, from John Henson to Spencer Hawes. Matthew Dellavedova is most likely overpaid at $9.6 million as the team hands the reins more fully to Brogdon.
That ties the hands of the Bucks as they try to improve the team in free agency. With no cap space the team will be left with exceptions to add talent. If they re-sign Tony Snell, they will most likely leap over the luxury tax line and be left with the taxpayer mid-level exception; if Snell walks then they should be able to stay under the tax with the standard mid-level exception.
What players could be interested in coming for a contract starting at $8.4 million? Which potential free agents could Milwaukee target to address its needs in the backcourt and on the wing?