The Milwaukee Bucks are not short on spending power. They are short on breathing room.
That’s the issue hanging over day two of free agency in Milwaukee, where the Bucks sit about $33 million below the tax line but are already bumping up against roster limits, as Spotrac’s Keith Smith pointed out. Right now, teams can carry 21 players, but that number shrinks once the regular season gets closer, when rosters must be trimmed to 15 standard contracts and three two-ways. That reality has to shape everything Milwaukee does next.
The Bucks are currently sitting on 15 standard players, and that count doesn’t even include Pete Nance, whose deal is not guaranteed for next season. It also leaves out recent draftee Malique Lewis and last year’s pick Bogoljub Marković.
If Milwaukee declined Nance’s contract and kept the two overseas, that could basically be the full roster. But that’s not the way this is headed.
The Bucks still appear likely to keep working the board, which means they’ll need to open up space somewhere.
The most obvious names to watch are Kyle Kuzma and Gary Harris. Both are on expiring deals, which at least makes them movable pieces.
Kuzma is the tougher sell because he’s making roughly $20 million. Harris, on the other hand, is on a near-minimum contract and should be much easier to flip if Milwaukee decides to keep reshaping the group.
AJ Green and Myles Turner are also worth monitoring. Green is valuable because he’s one of the best shooters in the NBA, and that kind of skill tends to draw interest around the league. Turner is one of the older players on the roster, and the Bucks could potentially use him to bring back assets that fit better with their younger timeline.
So far, Milwaukee’s only move has been re-signing Ousmane Dieng. That doesn’t mean the work is anywhere close to finished. The Bucks still have money to spend, and they also have a trade exception worth around $25 million, which gives them the ability to absorb a player without sending salary back.
A medium-sized move would not be a surprise. The guard and center spots are already crowded, but Milwaukee could use another forward, especially if it finds a way to move Kuzma.
Jonathan Kuminga is available. Tari Eason could be a strong use of the team’s money.
The Bucks have options. The real question is how they create the room to actually use them.
For now, the mission is simple: get talent in the building and sort out the rest later.
In Other News...
Bucks Just Set Up A Bigger Roster Decision With Markovic
The Bucks have locked in another piece of their young core, signing 2025 second-round pick Bogoljub Markovic to a four-year, $9.3 million contract with a team option in the final season. It is the latest sign that Milwaukee is trying to blend development with immediate roster-building, and it gives the front office a longer look at a prospect it clearly wanted to bring stateside and fold into the system.
Markovics deal also adds pressure to a roster that is already getting crowded as the Bucks continue sorting through a youth movement. Milwaukee still has more decisions to make as it balances keeping options open with the reality of a shrinking path to regular-season roster compliance, and the way it handles that squeeze could say plenty about how aggressively the team wants to reshape the group around its newer additions. [Read more 🡒]
This Bucks Newcomer Suddenly Matters More Than Fans Realize
Kasparas Jakuionis is one of the quieter names to come out of the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade, but the 19-year-old guard has already started giving Milwaukee a reason to pay attention. Drafted by Miami in 2025, he showed a useful shooting touch as a rookie, averaging 6.2 points while knocking down 42.3% of his threes, the sort of early efficiency that can matter on a roster trying to reshape itself around young talent.
Jakuionis said the first day after the deal was difficult, which hardly surprises for a player whose NBA life changed so abruptly, but he has also framed the move as a chance to grow with a young organization. He added another little reminder of his upside at an exhibition game for Lithuania, where he posted a double-double and handled the ball well against Ukraine, giving the Bucks a fresh reason to keep an eye on how quickly his role can expand. [Read more 🡒]