When a season starts to tilt away from championship expectations, the calendar changes. For the Bucks, the bigger questions aren’t about where the games land in the standings so much as which players can still move the needle - either on the floor or in a future trade.
Milwaukee is out to an unsurprising 1-4 start, and that fits the broader expectation around a roster that is now being viewed through a different lens. The front office and new coach Taylor Jenkins will get a chance to sort through what’s here, figure out which pieces belong in the long run and decide whether some of the most productive players now are also the ones most likely to be dealt later, depending on salary and timeline.
That’s why strong individual play can still matter even in a shaky start. If a Buck performs well, it may not help the standings right away, but it can still help the franchise by drawing interest from another team down the line.
Herro has been one of the clearest examples so far. The common knock on him has long been that he’s a chucker, but the numbers have never really backed that up.
He does take a lot of shots, yet he’s usually been efficient with them, and that has carried over in Milwaukee. Through his first season with the Bucks, he’s making 50 percent of his 17.2 shots per game, including a blistering 47 percent from three-point range.
He’s not a lead player on a contender, but he has shown that when he’s healthy, he can score from anywhere on the floor. That creates a real decision for Milwaukee on a possible extension.
If the sides can’t land on a palatable number, moving him before free agency could make sense, and there should be teams - Detroit among them - that can use what he brings.
Kuzma’s early stretch has played out differently. His opener was rough enough that content creators had enough material for whole videos about it, and still missed a few lowlights.
Since then, though, he’s been better, with three efficient double-digit scoring games before a poor 18-minute showing in the blowout loss to Houston. By now, everyone knows what Kuzma is and what he isn’t, so his recent play probably won’t swing his trade value much either way.
What does matter is the contract: he’s on a sizable expiring deal, and a team might part with a second-round pick just to get the cap flexibility. For a Bucks team thinner at forward than at guard, that’s the kind of move worth considering.
Then there’s Turner, whose deal is a tougher sell. It’s already in its second season, with $56 million more still on the books after that, and there isn’t much that can make the contract look appealing.
Milwaukee appears to be starting him over Kel'el Ware in part to create some market interest, but so far that hasn’t worked. In nearly 27 minutes a night, he’s averaging just 6.6 points and 4.8 rebounds while shooting 35 percent from the floor.
Expected to be a stretch big, he’s hit only 4 of 22 three-pointers. At this point, it would take a serious stretch of the imagination to think anyone is eager to take on that deal soon.
In Other News...
Pistons Suddenly Linked To A Scorer Who Could Change Their Ceiling
The Bucks offseason reset took a dramatic turn when they sent Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to Miami in a package built around Tyler Herro, Kelel Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakucionis and a haul of future draft assets. For Milwaukee, it was the kind of move that signals a full recalibration, with the franchise prioritizing flexibility and long-term pieces over trying to patch together another immediate run.
Herros arrival has already created ripple effects beyond Milwaukee, because his name is now being floated in connection with Detroit. The Pistons have been searching for more scoring punch and perimeter shooting, and a player with Herros offensive profile would fit that need in a hurry. From the Bucks side, any deal involving him would be part of a broader rebuild, but for Detroit it would be about whether this is the kind of swing that meaningfully raises the ceiling. [Read more 🡒]
Bucks Look More Right By The Day On Kevin Porter Jr
The Bucks decision to waive Kevin Porter Jr. looks a little sharper with each passing day. Milwaukee chose player development and roster flexibility over keeping him, a move that fit the teams broader approach to shaping the back end of the roster rather than tying itself to a player whose market was never going to be straightforward.
Porter remains unsigned even as injuries have created openings around the league, which says plenty about how teams are weighing his fit and value. Sacramento and Denver were the only clubs reported to have shown notable interest, and the lack of a landing spot so far only reinforces why Milwaukee moved on when it did. [Read more 🡒]
Bucks Rebuild Debate Just Got More Complicated After Jaylen Brown Report
A fresh layer has been added to the Bucks long-running offseason debate, and it comes from an unexpected place. Former Celtic Brian Scalabrine reportedly said Jaylen Brown asked for a trade to Milwaukee and wanted to land there, a revelation that only sharpens the question of what the Bucks were weighing as they mapped out their next move. For a team trying to thread the needle between staying competitive and resetting the roster, that kind of interest from a star player makes the decision tree look a lot different in hindsight.
Even so, Milwaukees front office appears to have leaned toward a different kind of value, one built around a trade package from Miami rather than taking on Browns contract and the complications that come with it. The Bucks have been signaling a preference for younger pieces and a cleaner rebuild path, and Browns salary and fit would have made that a much bigger swing. The report doesnt change where Milwaukee is headed, but it does make the alternative feel more real than it did a few days ago. [Read more 🡒]