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On Tuesday, the Milwaukee Bucks sent a shock through the NBA world by signing former Indiana Pacers big man Myles Turner to a four-year contract. In order to make this happen, the Bucks waived point guard Damian Lillard and stretched out the period over which they will pay him his owed money.
It was by far the biggest move of the offseason for a Bucks team that had previously seen free agent Brook Lopez sign with the Los Angeles Clippers.
In response to the move, the good folks over in Las Vegas shifted the Bucks' title odds from +10000 to +6000, per the DraftKings Sportsbook.
These are still very long odds to be sure, but it does signal the Bucks' commitment to building something around Giannis Antetokounmpo as opposed to trading him and officially entering a rebuild.
A curious move by the Bucks
It's worth considering how much the current injury-riddled landscape of the Eastern Conference factored into the Bucks' decision to make such a drastic move by waiving Lillard and signing Turner.
Even after this move, the Bucks would figure to be a ways away from teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks, and possibly even newcomers like the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference hierarchy.
Milwaukee doesn't have a viable point guard on its roster at the current moment and their wing options leave a lot to be desired, to say the very least.
Still, it's a clear signal from the franchise that the last thing they plan on doing is trading Antetokounmpo, and it should make them more competitive in 2025-26 than they would have been had they not made this move.
Turner brings a unique skillset to the Bucks, able to knock down three pointers at a high clip and protect the rim on defense. In some ways, he profiles as a younger, more athletic version of Brook Lopez, who manned the middle for the Bucks over the last several years.
It remains to be seen just how much this move will help the Bucks, but it's clear that they're pushing all their chips to the center of the table.
