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The Milwaukee Bucks entered the 2021-22 season looking to repeat as NBA champions, but they’ll instead have to re-think their roster after being eliminated from championship contention in the second round of the playoffs. Here’s Milwaukee’s situation heading into the 2022 summer.
2021-22 season recap
The Bucks managed to secure the No. 3 seed in the East, but that may have cost them down the line with homecourt advantage. Milwaukee got an easy matchup in the first round against the Bulls, but suffered a huge injury with Khris Middleton sustaining a sprained MCL. Milwaukee then met the Celtics, who eliminated them 4-3 with Game 7 coming in Boston. Middleton didn’t play the whole series, but it’s hard to know how much of a difference he would’ve made given Boston’s elite marksmanship. The Celtics got the higher seed on the last day of the season, giving them Game 7 on their home floor.
2022 offseason priorities
The core of Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday is going to be around for a while. The Bucks will have to shuffle the pieces around those three guys. Brook Lopez has been dealing with injuries of late and didn’t look quite like himself for much of the season when he was healthy. The Bucks will also likely regret trading Donte DiVincenzo given how poor their perimeter shooting was in Games 6 and 7 against Boston. Bobby Portis and Pat Connaughton have player options, and those are rotation players Milwaukee would likely want back. Grayson Allen carries a $9 million cap hit, and his struggles in the second round might lead to a trade.