Despite season-ending injuries to
Michael Redd and Andrew Bogut and controversies surrounding Charlie
Villanueva's use of Twitter during intermission, the Bucks remained
relevant in the Eastern Conference. Led by head coach Scott Skiles,
the squad showed flashes of their defensive prowess while developing
their young core in Ramon Sessions, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, and Joe
Alexander. Unlike past seasons, they persevered through these
misfortunes and finally developed an identity that renewed the
optimism and excitement in the city of Milwaukee. For nearly seventy
games, the Bucks were in the hunt for the last spot in the East until
reality had finally set in.
Heading into the offseason, there were
feelings that management would continue to build off of last season's
accomplishments. This assumption was fueled by the idea that the
return of Redd and Bogut and the continuous development of their
young nucleus would propel them to their first playoff appearance in
years...
However, this huge step forward was not
satisfactory enough and management has obviously decided to overhaul
the roster. This offseason has been highlighted with trading away
their second-leading scorer, Richard Jefferson and refusing to
re-sign their former second round gem, Ramon Sessions. In return, the
Bucks have acquired Kurt Thomas, Hakim Warrick, Carlos Delfino, Ersan
Ilyasova and Roko Ukic while drafting rookies Brandon Jennings and
Jodie Meeks.
Having said this, what do these moves
signal for the Milwaukee Bucks?
With all these short-term contracts on
the roster, the Bucks are looking to accomplish their goals in the
next two seasons. While the talent that they acquired clearly does
not match last season's roster, they have improved their overall
depth. In the frontcourt, the additions of Kurt Thomas and Hakim
Warrick should provide improved insurance policies in case Andrew
Bogut goes out with another injury. Also, Carlos Delfino and Ersan
Ilyasova provide the Bucks with outside shooting that should improve
their inside-outside game. More importantly, the trade of Richard
Jefferson will open up more minutes for Alexander and Mbah a Moute to
continue to develop. Lastly, the main concern will lie in the
backcourt. As the Bucks have acquired three unproven guards, it will
be interesting to see if these players will be able to provide
reliable minutes behind Luke Ridnour and Michael Redd.
Having mentioned the depth of the
Bucks, another important aspect to discuss is if management's
decision to overhaul the roster was based on financial reasons.
Seeing that management has traded for expiring contracts and has
avoided signing free agents to long-term deals, the initial thought
that comes up is likely the 2010 sweepstakes. However, the Bucks will
still have eleven players under contract which amounts to
approximately 50 million dollars. This means that there is little
chance that the Bucks can sign an all-star caliber player unless he
accepts the mid-level exception. Despite this current financial
situation, there are still ways that the Bucks can somehow be players
in 2010. Quite similar to Richard Jefferson's case, the Bucks can
look to trade Redd for players with expiring contracts. Also, Michael
Redd has the right to exercise his Early Termination Option where he
would eventually become a free agent. If one of these two events
occur, the Bucks will have approximately 18 millions dollars to spend
in the 2010 offseason.
Looking forward, there are just too
many uncertainties both short and long term. Instead of building off
of last season's accomplishments, the Bucks have risked their chances
of making the playoffs this upcoming season. Whenever there is a
major roster overhaul, key issues such as chemistry will need to be
addressed. If this team is unable to come together quickly, their
window of opportunity has unnecessarily been closed. In response,
management will likely gear themselves towards the future. In the
2011 offseason, the Bucks will potentially have enough cap room to
sign an all-star caliber player. While they will have financial
flexibility, when was the last time management was able to lure a big
name player into the city of Milwaukee? Having said this, the Bucks
should have continued to develop last season's squad while possibly
making minor changes. If the return of Redd and Bogut did not propel
them to making the playoffs, then these moves would have been
understandable. Ultimately, the Bucks have potentially risked their
team's success today while preparing themselves for an unforeseeable
future.