The Milwaukee Bucks have been championship contenders for the last 5 years and more, climbing all the way to the top in 2021 and overturning a 2-0 deficit to the Phoenix Suns to become NBA Champions. They failed to defend their crown after Khris Middleton was hurt in the playoffs and the Bucks just couldn’t outmatch the Boston Celtics in the second round.
With the Bucks not making major moves for the roster due to their future picks and cap space being gone, Brian Windhorst has suggested that Giannis may think twice before extending his contract with the Bucks next season.
https://twitter.com/_talkin_nba/status/1583182726324420609
“Khris Middleton is out, Pat Connaughton is out. This is a low-key important year for the Bucks because their ownership group has gone as far as they can go. They’re deep in the tax, they gave Bobby Portis a contract, they gave Connaughton a contract. They didn’t extend Khris Middleton, who’s headed for free agency next year with a player option, we’ll see how that goes. I hate to bring this up, next summer is the first time Giannis can extend his contract for the Supermax. We are coming to a point of evaluation for Giannis on the Bucks next year. If Middleton was healthy, they beat the Celtics in the second round, it was a 7-game series without him. I think they might have beat the Heat and go the Finals where who knows what happens. This team could very well be having a ring night. I’m not sounding the alarm but just pointing out that this is who they are and next year, Giannis gets to make a referendum on where the team are.”
Giannis has proven loyalty to the Bucks, re-signing with the team in 2021 even when most reporters had been talking about a free agent race to sign Giannis, who wasn’t expected to re-sign in Milwaukee until he did exactly that with a year left on his old contract.
Have The Milwaukee Bucks Peaked?
It is fair to say that the Bucks have hit their peak with their current roster. You can’t get better than a championship, and the Bucks haven’t been keeping up with the changes around the league that teams have made. Core Bucks’ players like Jrue Holiday and Brook Lopez are old and will be relied on heavily by Milwaukee to push for the playoffs.
However, when the entire Bucks team is healthy, we have seen them be one of the best in the league, even last season. Giannis won’t turn his back on this team easily, so it’ll be interesting to see how the Bucks fare in the Eastern Conference this season.
