The Damian Lillard trade saga is finally over. The seven-time All-Star is headed to the Milwaukee Bucks to form a superstar pairing with Giannis Antetokounmpo. Milwaukee agreed to land Lillard in a three-team deal with the Portland Trail Blazers and the Phoenix Suns.
Portland will receive Jrue Holiday, Deandre Ayton, Toumani Camara, the Bucks' 2029 unprotected first-round draft pick, and 2028 and 2030 pick swaps from Milwaukee. Meanwhile, Phoenix gets Jusuf Nurkic, Grayson Allen, Nassir Little, and Keon Johnson.
While they gain Dame Time, the Bucks lost one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA in Jrue Holiday. They also lost more of their guard depth with Allen going to Phoenix.
In the aftermath of the Lillard deal, Milwaukee's lineup currently looks like this:
Guards: Damian Lillard, Pat Connaughton, Malik Beasley, AJ Green, Lindell Wigginton, Andre Jackson Jr.,
Wings: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Jae Crowder, MarJon Beauchamp, Thanasis Antetokounmpo
Bigs: Brook Lopez, Bobby Portis, Robin Lopez
Looking at the lineup above, let's take a look at the next possible move the Milwaukee Bucks must make after making the blockbuster trade for Damian Lillard.
Add guard depth
As you can see above, the Bucks lack some serious depth at the guard position. Trading Allen was huge as they also lost their starting shooting guard. Pat Connaughton and Malik Beasley should now vie for that role during training camp.
After losing Jevon Carter in the offseason to the Chicago Bulls, the Bucks also don't have a backup point guard. They will need to find one to spell some minutes off Damian Lillard, who is already 33 years old.
Lillard, Antetokounmpo, and Middleton should all share ball handling duties. New Bucks head coach Adrian Griffin could rotate the three by staggering them with the second stringers. But they could always use another legitimate table setter in the second unit to ease the load off the three stars.
Point guard options in free agency
At this point in the offseason, the market is already a little dried up. But there are still some names out there worth grabbing, especially if you're a team like the Bucks who don't really need a major contributor.
One player the Bucks could sign is John Wall. If you're Milwaukee, why not give the five-time All-Star a look? Sure, he's no longer the speedy dynamo who once lit up Washington, D.C. on a nightly basis. His Clippers stint did not particularly look good either. But at this point, he could still thrive on a lesser role while providing playmaking in the backcourt for any contender like the Bucks.
Another guard that the Bucks could sign and take a flier on is Austin Rivers. Rivers has spent most of the offseason talking on podcasts about topics he's very passionate about. However, the 31-year-old has yet to be signed after spending the previous campaign with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Rivers appeared in 52 games for the Timberwolves and averaged nearly 20 minutes per contest. A role player throughout his career, Rivers could provide some decent outside shooting and perimeter defense for the Bucks.
Some shooting guard options
Aside from their lack of a backup PG, the Bucks also lack some depth at the wings. Jae Crowder may be washed. MarJon Beauchamp is a wait-and-see-until-the-season-starts project to see whether he can take the next step and play a meaningful role on a championship contender.
A player who the Bucks could take a flier on and sign is Terence Davis. Davis spent the 2022-23 season with the Sacramento Kings, where he appeared in 64 games and averaged 6.7 points with a fairly decent true shooting percentage of 56.3 percent. He is also a fairly decent shooter from long distance with a career three-point shooting percentage of 36.6 percent.
Perhaps the Bucks can also sign someone like Will Barton. After spending the previous seven-plus seasons as a double-digit scorer for the Denver Nuggets, Barton played a lesser role in split time with the Washington Wizards and the Toronto Raptors. He averaged just a little over 17 minutes per game in 56 appearances throughout the 2022-23 season and registered career-lows in points and field goal percentage since his sophomore campaign. Barton's efficiency has dropped significantly over the last couple of years. But he could still provide a scoring spark plug for the Bucks off the bench.
What should the Bucks do?
The market obviously looks dry at this point and all their options are flawed in some point. Honestly, I think Milwaukee should go after Austin Rivers. The Bucks have a clear need at point guard, unless they think Lindell Wigginton or Andre Jackson Jr. are ready to contribute in a pretty significant way throughout the course of an 82-game grind.
Going back to Rivers — he is still a solid option as a reserve guard and he is already used to that role. He brings toughness, energy, and hustle and has always been someone who is willing to do the dirty work. Milwaukee has lost some of its swagger ever since P.J. Tucker left and more so now that Holiday is gone, too. Perhaps Rivers can bring some of that toughness and tenacity they need.
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