Milwaukee Bucks: 3 questions the Bucks must properly resolve

Will the Milwaukee Bucks be active in the trade market?

The most interesting and anticipating moves this offseason will take place in the trade market, and the Milwaukee Bucks could emerge as real aggressors. The Bucks obviously won’t blow the roster up, but they’ll most likely make a move that strengthens their backcourt.

The only untouchables should be league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, All-Star forward Khris Middleton, and center Brook Lopez. Everyone else on the roster could be involved in potential trade talks.

Jon Horst and management will have many cards to deal with at the table; from young assets, draft picks, and salary fillers to valued role players, Milwaukee has the necessary tools to construct at least one roster-defining deal. Following a season in which the Bucks failed to meet expectations again, it’s optimistic that a reasonable trade could occur — But for who? And how much will the Bucks be willing to sacrifice?

The most popular and realistic targets for the Bucks should become Oklahoma City Thunder guard Chris Paul and New Orleans Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday.

The Thunder are headed for a full rebuild, especially after parting ways with head coach Billy Donovan, which means Chris Paul will certainly be available for trade. It’s more than likely that he’ll be offloaded this offseason with many teams reportedly interested.

The only issue associated with a Chris Paul trade would be the whopping $85 million that he’s owed over the last two years of his contract. Paul will make $41.3 million next season and will have a $44.2 million player option for the 2021-22 season when he turns 36 years old. Nevertheless, CP3 and the Milwaukee Bucks seem like they need each other more than ever.

Jrue Holiday’s situation is much different. The Pelicans will likely listen to offers for the two-way stud, but will not feel forced to trade him anytime soon. It may take an overwhelming offer for the Pelicans to move on from Holiday, who’s also on a fair contract that will pay him around $51 million over the next two years along with incentives (per ESPN’s Bobby Marks).

In either trade involving Paul or Holiday to the Bucks, there’s no doubt that Milwaukee would ship out Eric Bledsoe. Bledsoe has inexcusably hit his third strike as a Buck due to three consecutive disappointing postseason performances, so it would be no surprise to see him depart.

Along with Bledsoe, the Bucks can incentivize with some of the draft picks that they hold and/or with young assets such as Donte DiVincenzo and D.J. Wilson. To match salaries in potential deals, the Bucks can guarantee the $7 million contract for Ersan Ilyasova next season to use him as a trade chip. George Hill and Thanasis Antetokounmpo are unlikely to be used as salary fillers, but it’s not out of the question.

As mentioned earlier, the Bucks have the pieces to pull off a trade for a serious upgrade in the backcourt, and the expectation is that they eventually will. Rumors will continue to circulate, but just know that there are many unrealistic trade targets for the Bucks as well such as Bradley Beal, CJ McCollum, Zach LaVine, Victor Oladipo, Buddy Hield, Derrick Rose, and DeMar DeRozan.