The championship window for the Bucks might be smaller than what fans perceive.
Milwaukee parted ways with head coach Mike Budenholzer after a historic first-round loss to the Miami Heat in the NBA playoffs. Budenholzer helped guide the team to its first NBA title in 50 years when the Bucks beat the Phoenix Suns in the 2021 NBA Finals. But an exit as a No. 1 seed in this season’s playoffs seemed to be the last straw for the front office.
A new head coach is expected to walk into a good situation, but ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst took a look at the big picture for the franchise. Co-owner Marc Lasry sold his ownership stake to Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and Haslam Sports Group this year. It seemed like a strange move for a winning franchise. Lasry sold the team for $3.2 billion, so that is nice motivator, but Windhorst hinted at a larger reason for the transaction.
“(Marc Lasry sold) because of the thundercloud that’s on the horizon. We are now hearing the first rumblings,” Windhorst said on ESPN’s “Get Up” on Friday.
The NBA insider pointed out superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo has two years left on his contract, and he has a player option in the 2025-26 season. Khris Middleton, who turns 32 on Aug. 12, has a player option this offseason, and the Bucks must decide if they want to re-sign the three-time All-Star. Brook Lopez is an unrestricted free agent, and the 35-year-old has been a key piece for Milwaukee for the past five seasons. There also are other core pieces to the team like Jrue Holiday and Bobby Portis that the Bucks must decide are worth keeping.
Windhorst also pointed out Milwaukee faces paying the repeater tax, and the new collective-bargaining agreement has new rules that prevents teams from spending more money than their competitors.
CJ McCollum, who is the president of the National Basketball Players Association and helped negotiate the league’s new CBA, asked the question that Windhorst seemed to lead to: “Where does Giannis go?”
Windhorst made it clear he believes the Bucks will do everything in their power to retain their superstar. But that question must be answered first to attract a high-quality head coach and to bring in the right players if the franchise wants to win another NBA title.
It’s a situation teams like the Celtics should be paying attention to. Boston has been firm on keeping Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown together, and the new CBA does allow the C’s flexibility to re-sign Brown. But if Antetokounmpo chooses to leave the Bucks, does he stay in the East? Would president of basketball operations Brad Stevens make a run at the 28-year-old? These are questions fans should ask themselves if things start going downhill in Milwaukee.
