The Milwaukee Bucks are looking for major additions this summer to add talent to their roster. They’re 25-17 this season and are looking like potential contenders in the East, but they need greater perimeter weapons to ensure Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard have the support they need. The Bucks know of this urgency and are already targeting a former All-Star.
As the Suns call every team to take on Bradley Beal’s contract, Marc Stein is reporting that the Bucks want to acquire a $50 million salary player and that Beal might just be that guy.
“The Bucks, to this point, have been more frequently painted as a team likely to rekindle their previous interest in Phoenix’s Bradley Beal if they intend to pursue a trade for a player in the $50 million range.”
This move makes little sense to me. Why do the Bucks need Beal? Their scoring has been decent, with Lillard and Giannis leading the offense and giving space to breakout players like AJ Green, who is on a cost-controlled contract and a young prospect.
Beal is entitled to $50.2 million this season. The team that employs him will also need to pay over $111 million from 2025 to 2027 for his services. They can’t get rid of him, as he has a no-trade clause. He waived it to join the Suns and might be forced to waive it again if he gets a desirable move away this winter. He’s averaging 17.5 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 3.3 assists this season.
The Bucks could potentially send players like Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis to make this deal a reality.
I’m trying to support this trade, but I simply can’t. The Beal and Lillard backcourt is unnecessary, especially when the usage leader in Milwaukee has been Giannis for nearly a decade now. Lillard took a season to adjust to Giannis’ having the ball as much, and that process was made even harder by adding another ball-heavy star scorer to the roster.
If the Bucks were making these changes without giving up core players, it’s one thing. Middleton isn’t the same player he used to be, but adding Beal at Middleton’s expense would have greater morale ramifications on the squad. It would also put the team in salary cap hell next season, with three super-max players on contract.
This would be a bad trade for the Bucks and I hope they avoid it all costs. Keep trying to land Jimmy Butler but stay away from Beal as long as you can.
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