The NBA is looking into the Bucks’ four-year, $64.0 million contract with Gary Trent Jr. for possible cap circumvention. It’s not just about whether Milwaukee overpaid him, because teams do that all the time. The league is digging into whether the Bucks quietly promised him a bigger deal later in exchange for taking smaller contracts the last two seasons.
Nothing is proven yet, and an investigation doesn’t automatically void the contract or anything like it. I mean, let’s just look at Kawhi’s Aspiration deal. But if the NBA finds clear evidence that both sides had a side agreement, Commissioner Adam Silver has the power under the CBA to void the whole thing. That would create a total mess for Trent, the Bucks’ roster, and their ongoing rebuild.
Why The Contract Raised Eyebrows
Trent first joined the Bucks on a minimum deal in 2024 after averaging 13.7 points and shooting 39.3% from three with the Raptors. This followed a three-year, $52 million deal he previously signed through the end of the 2023-24 season.
He came back in 2025 on a two-year, $7.5 million deal that included a $3.9 million player option for 2026-27. Those two seasons in Milwaukee gave the Bucks his Early Bird rights, letting them go over the cap to re-sign him.
He turned down that option and landed a fully guaranteed four-year, $64.0 million contract instead. The money breaks down to $15.2 million for 2026-27, $16.4 million in each of the next two seasons, and $16.0 million in the final year.
That massive jump looks pretty wild when you look at his production last season. Trent averaged just 8.1 points, 1.0 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in 21.2 minutes. He shot 38.7% from the field and 36.0% from three (his lowest scoring and minutes since his rookie year). On top of that, the Bucks already have a crowded backcourt with Tyler Herro, Ryan Rollins, Kevin Porter Jr., and Brayden Burries.
There’s still a basketball case for keeping him. Trent is a career 38.7% three-point shooter and dropped 18.8 points while hitting 22 of 44 threes during Milwaukee’s 2025 playoff round. A bad contract doesn’t automatically mean it’s illegal. The NBA needs real proof of a secret prior agreement, not just that the Bucks made a questionable business decision.
What Happens To Trent If The Deal Gets Voided
Since he already declined his previous player option, he’d likely head back into unrestricted free agency without any guaranteed money. If the NBA voids the contract, Trent loses the entire $64.0 million. The commissioner could also ban him from re-signing with the Bucks, and the CBA lets the league fine a player up to $350,000 when both sides are found guilty.
Trent could still sign somewhere else, but there’s almost no chance he gets anywhere close to that money again. Most contenders have already spent their cap space, and rebuilding teams aren’t lining up to pay $16 million a year to a 27-year-old guard coming off an 8.1-point season. In the end, Trent would be the one who loses the most, going from a big guaranteed payday to scrambling for smaller offers.
How It Would Affect The Bucks
Voiding the deal would wipe Trent’s $15.2 million off Milwaukee’s books for next season and clear out the future years as well. That doesn’t mean the Bucks suddenly get $15.2 million in fresh cap space to go shopping. They’re already over the cap, so most of that relief would just give them more breathing room under the apron and lower their long-term payroll instead of letting them sign another big-name player right away.
On the court, losing Trent wouldn’t blow up their rotation. Herro and Rollins can handle the starting spot, while Porter and Burries can soak up the rest of the guard minutes. Since the Bucks are in rebuild mode after trading Giannis, extra playing time for the younger guys is the way to go.
Still, it wouldn’t exactly be a win. They signed Trent because they wanted him on the team, and a voided contract would leave them thinner after most good free agents have already found new homes.
The real pain for Milwaukee could come from the penalties. The CBA lets the league fine a team up to $7.5 million, strip draft picks, void contracts, and suspend front office people for up to a year in these cases. They can also go after the agent through the players’ union.
For a team that just entered the post-Giannis era, losing draft picks would sting way more than a fine. The Bucks need every asset they can get to build around young pieces like Kel’el Ware, Kasparas Jakucionis, Nate Ament, Burries and the rest of the group.
A $7.5 million fine hurts the owner’s pocket. Losing first-round picks can set the rebuild back for years.
The Joe Smith Precedent Shows How Bad It Can Get
The closest comparison is the old Joe Smith situation with the Timberwolves. Minnesota secretly promised Smith bigger money later if he signed cheap short-term deals to build Bird rights. The NBA voided those contracts, took away his Bird rights, fined the team $3.5 million, and stripped five first-round picks. Smith became a free agent and signed with the Pistons. It’s still the last time the league fully voided a contract for cap circumvention.
I doubt we see that extreme outcome here unless the league has strong evidence like messages, testimony, or documents showing Trent took less money because Milwaukee promised to make it up later.
A weird contract and a sudden big raise can look suspicious, but they don’t prove anything by themselves. The CBA does allow circumstantial evidence, including deals that don’t make sense without some kind of violation, so the Bucks have to treat this seriously.
If the NBA finds nothing, Trent keeps his $64.0 million, and this just becomes another strange free-agency signing. But if they prove there was a prior agreement, Trent could lose everything, the Bucks could lose picks, and this would turn into the biggest salary-cap scandal since the Joe Smith case, because at this point, I really doubt the Kawhi investigation will lead anywhere.
