The 2022-2023 campaign can be considered a failure for the Milwaukee Bucks. Although Giannis Antetokounmpo went viral for calling this season not a failure but just another step on the journey after the Bucks were upset in the playoffs, many still call this year a failure for Milwaukee. They entered the postseason as the No. 1 overall seed and the clear favorites to make it out of the East. Five games later they found themselves out of the postseason after being shocked by the Miami Heat 4-1. Giannis did miss a few games during the series with an injury, but the Bucks ultimately were a more talented team that just simply didn't play as hard as the Heat. The shocking loss led to the immediate firing of Mike Budenholzer, who has now been replaced with Adrian Griffin. With the 2023 NBA Draft now over, the Bucks can firmly focus on NBA free agency and who to bring in that can help them avoid a similar fate to this season. The main NBA free agency targets to start need to be Khris Middleton, Bruce Brown, and Malik Beasley.

As long as the Bucks have Giannis, they will be NBA Finals contenders. This is what makes NBA free agency more important for Milwaukee than most other teams, as they will never be looking to build through the draft with the core of their roster in tact. Instead, they will be going into every offseason with the intention of adding key veterans around Giannis to retool for consistent championship runs. In NBA free agency this year, the priority needs to be guards who can make winning plays. There biggest struggle in this postseason was their inability to get impact plays out of guys other than Giannis; the Heat locked in on the Bucks star and forced the rest of the Bucks to beat them, and Milwaukee was unable to do so. This is why as soon as NBA free agency starts this Friday, Khris Middleton, Bruce Brown and Malik Beasley need to be priority targets for the Bucks.

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Khris Middleton

Khris Middleton declined his player option with the Bucks and is set to hit NBA free agency on Friday. Although he will entertain offers from other teams, returning to Milwaukee and continuing his career with the Bucks makes a lot of sense for Middleton. He has carved out a nice role as second fiddle to Giannis, and he is guaranteed to be an important part of the Bucks system as long as he stays. Although he didn't perform up to his standards in the playoffs, coming back to the Bucks will give him the motivation to step up next season in Milwaukee's quest for another NBA Finals ring. For the Bucks, they need Middleton or they risk losing another year of Giannis' prime.

Although the Bucks needed more scoring in the postseason, losing Middleton would put them in a big predicament. All of the sudden their second best scorer would be gone and Giannis would need more help than they already need. Adding more than just Middleton is definitely a priority, but they can't afford to lose Middleton. Khris Middleton has quietly become one of the best mid range scoring threats in the NBA, and he plays a very unselfish brand of basketball that works well alongside Giannis. The Bucks need to add more scoring in NBA free agency, but it will all start with retaining Khris Middleton.

Bruce Brown

Bruce Brown is the exact player the Bucks need to add. For the Denver Nuggets, Bruce Brown proved to be arguably the most important player during the NBA Finals run outside of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. Night in and night out, Bruce Brown made winning plays for the Nuggets on both ends of the floor. He displayed an energy and intensity that NBA Finals contenders need to have, something the Bucks were missing in their upset loss to the Heat. If the Bucks want to return to the NBA Finals, Bruce Brown would be a massive help in doing so.

As of right now, Bruce Brown looks most likely to return to the Nuggets. Both sides like each other and he was a huge piece of their NBA Finals victory; however, the Nuggets might not be willing to pay him as much as some other teams across the league. The Bucks need to be one of those teams that blow Bruce Brown out of the water with their offer; he fits the role that the Bucks need to put themselves back on top. While NBA free agency will be huge for the Bucks, getting Bruce Brown could end up being their biggest move.

Malik Beasley

Malik Beasley got lost on the bench and out of the Los Angeles Lakers rotation this year. Despite his inability to find the floor, Beasley still has plenty of talent and is a dead-eye three-point shooter. Overall, he didn't fit the identity that the Lakers possess and it looks like he is not a part of their plans for the future. This will lead to Beasley testing the NBA free agency market, and the Bucks would be prudent to get in contact. Alongside the system they have built around Giannis, Beasley figures to be the perfect addition.

Malik Beasley has made a career out of being a spark off of the bench that can heat up from beyond the arc. This is literally the exact prototype that the Bucks covet, and it can be demonstrated by their acquisitions in recent years. Players like Joe Ingles, Jae Crowder, Pat Connaughton, Wesley Matthews, and Grayson Allen have earned productive minutes being guys on the perimeter that Giannis can look to when clogging the paint. Beasley could fill a similar role, and he could do it for a relatively cheap contract. Once NBA free agency gets going, the Bucks need to target Malik Beasley.