Subscribe
Follow Us
The Milwaukee Bucks caught the attention of the entire NBA world on Tuesday when they decided to waive and stretch the remaining $112.6 million on Damian Lillard's contract to open up the space necessary to sign Myles Turner to a four-year, $107 million deal to replace Brook Lopez, who decided to sign with the Los Angeles Clippers.
This signified the Bucks' intention to remain competitive for the next few years, spitting on the face of those who thought that the next few years were going to be bleak in Milwaukee. They may have limited resources, but the Bucks front office will look to use everything available to them to put together the best team they possibly could around Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The roster around Antetokounmpo for next season is taking shape, with the Bucks being one of the most active teams thus far in this year's free agency. They re-signed the likes of Bobby Portis, Gary Trent Jr., Kevin Porter Jr., Taurean Prince, and Jericho Sims, signed Gary Harris, and traded Pat Connaughton for Vasilije Micic.
Still, one member of the current roster sticks out like a sore thumb, and the Bucks will be better off moving on from this player. With that said, this is the next move the Bucks must make after an eventful first few days in free agency.
Bucks ship off Kyle Kuzma to the Windy City
Bucks trade: Kyle Kuzma, three second-round picks
Bulls trade: Patrick Williams, Ayo Dosunmu
Kyle Kuzma could not have controlled the circumstances that brought him to the Cream City. The Bucks, in a move that reeked of desperation, decided to trade one of the best players in franchise history, Khris Middleton, to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Kuzma.
Kuzma seemed to bring in the size and rebounding and youthful verve that the veteran Bucks team needed, but his impact waned as the season went on. He even ended up being cast aside when the Bucks' backs were against the wall in the first round of the playoffs against the Indiana Pacers, with head coach Doc Rivers playing him just limited minutes in their Game 5 loss.
That shows just how far Kuzma has fallen that, amid the Bucks' lack of depth, Rivers decided that Kuzma wasn't one of the players he wanted to rely on against heavy adversity. And it becomes even more painful when one realizes that the Bucks got such little production from Kuzma when it mattered in exchange for Middleton, a certified playoff riser who gave the Pacers fits during the 2024 NBA playoffs.
Kuzma has thrived in a winning situation in the past, but that was as a role player off the bench with the Los Angeles Lakers. With the Bucks, he'll be expected to shoulder a heavy role alongside Antetokounmpo — something that he isn't quite equipped to handle considering his production this past season.
During the 2024-25 campaign, he put up just 14.8 points per game on 51.4 percent true shooting. His value couldn't be any lower than it is today, which may give the Bucks pause when it comes to trading him away. Perhaps they look for Kuzma's value to bounce back first before shopping him away.
But there is urgency for the Bucks to put together a winning team around Antetokounmpo, lest he requests a trade or, even worse, walks for nothing should he reach free agency in 2027. And Kuzma is a rare trade chip for the Bucks that allows them to bring back a player making a similar amount.
This brings us to a potential trade with the Bulls, a team that seems to prioritize name value more than any other in the NBA. Perhaps they could view Kuzma as a bounce-back candidate and someone who could fill their void at the four.
Patrick Williams disappointed in the first year of his five-year, $90 million deal; he put up the worst season of his career, averaging just 9.0 points on 51.2 percent true shooting. His effort was also on and off, and he ended up losing his starting spot to Matas Buzelis towards the end of the campaign.
Simply put, Williams' contract is a negative for the Bulls, someone they will need to attach draft picks to just to get off their books. This is why Ayo Dosunmu is involved in this potential trade, with Dosunmu acting as the sweetener that will convince the Bucks that taking on Williams and his hefty contract is worth it.
Dosunmu was mentioned in trade rumors the moment the Bulls traded Lonzo Ball for Isaac Okoro; Okoro could end up being the de facto replacement for Dosunmu. But before Dosunmu fell prey to a season-ending injury, he was in the middle of his most productive season yet, recording 12.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game on 49/33/79 shooting splits — with the 25-year-old combo guard even dropping a triple-double this past season.
Dosunmu will soon be up for a new contract, but he'll be worth every penny, considering how well he's been developing over the past few years. He should be a full-time starter for the Bucks at the two, allowing him to stuff the stat sheet the way he did when he started last season for the Bulls. (In 26 starts last season, he put up 14.2 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per ballgame.)
Dosunmu's value is so far into the positive spectrum that the Bucks will have to attach three second-round picks even though they're taking on Williams' contract. Even then, the Bucks can talk themselves into thinking that Williams, being just 23 years of age, could turn a corner soon — with Rivers being tasked to get the best out of the underperforming combo forward.
Considering the Bucks' current roster makeup, it appears as though they'll be playing fast next season, with Porter being the starting point guard and Turner, who's used to the Pacers' breakneck style of play, anchoring the defense. Acquiring two young wings in Dosunmu and Williams would help equip the Bucks with the players who can thrive in that system, all while getting rid of an underperformer who will be best known in the Cream City for being the one who was acquired in the Middleton trade.
