Milwaukee Bucks: Playoff Impact On Milwaukee’s Free Agents

Ti Windisch

Dec 16, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Tony Snell (21) drives around a pick from center Greg Monroe (15) with Chicago Bulls forward Taj Gibson (22) defending during the second half at the United Center. Milwaukee won 95-69. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

The Milwaukee Bucks have some free agency questions to answer, and their series against the Toronto Raptors affected the Bucks free agents’ stock.

The Milwaukee Bucks have their best player locked up for the next four seasons in Giannis Antetokounmpo, but unfortunately the Bucks aren’t allowed to just play one-on-one and put Giannis up against other teams’ best players. The Greek Freak needs help.

Plenty of Bucks players are signed through at least next season too, but there are some interesting pieces on the roster who either will or could be free agents this summer.

Greg Monroe

Greg Monroe’s free agency has been a fascinating topic of conversation for a while now. Monroe was one of the most consistent contributors on the Bucks all season, and that role did not change in the playoffs.

Among rotation players, only Giannis scored more points per 36 minutes in the postseason. Monroe’s per game stats don’t look fantastic because he played just 23.5 minutes per game, but those per 36 minutes numbers tell the story of how important Moose was against the Raptors.

Monroe averaged 20.2 points, 11.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.0 steals per 36 minutes in the postseason. He shot 52.9 percent from the field, which once again trailed only Giannis among Bucks rotation players.

If Monroe were a forward, there’s no doubt he’d opt out and collect a max contract for those kinds of numbers. Unfortunately for him, Moose can’t play any position but center, and not too many NBA teams are in need of a center this summer.

Still, should Monroe opt out there’s a good chance some team decides to pay him. One interesting and optimistic possibility is Monroe opting out of his deal simply to negotiate another contract with the Bucks. Monroe’s goal was to make the postseason, and although it took a season longer than expected Milwaukee brought him there.

Once Moose got to the playoffs, he used the big stage to prove he can play. Greg Monroe’s got some interesting options ahead of him, but his stock couldn’t have done anything except rise after the energy and ability he demonstrated against Toronto.

Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

Spencer Hawes

Unlike Greg Monroe, Spencer Hawes did not have a steady role in the 2017 NBA Playoffs. Jason Kidd only used Hawes for 17 total minutes, with all of those minutes coming in the first three games of the series.

Still, even in those spot minutes Hawes had a chance to showcase his best attribute. Hawes attempted two threes and made one of them in his spot minutes. The one advantage Hawes has over many other more traditional centers like Monroe is that he can shoot.

Shooting 50 percent from deep might be impressive to other teams, if the sample size were larger than two attempts. As nice as it was for Hawes to show teams that he can shoot, the fact that he didn’t get many minutes and that John Henson ended up grabbing those third center minutes speak to Hawes’ ability too, in a negative sense.

As effective as Hawes can be from deep and on the glass, he’s not a very capable defender, which is probably putting it mildly. Hawes is too slow to recover well if he’s matched up against a smaller player, and he doesn’t move much on defense.

Those deficiencies robbed Hawes of meaningful playing time in the playoffs, and the smart move for him might be to opt in to that last year of his deal and make guaranteed money before testing free agency again.

Jason Terry

It’s easy to think about Jason Terry’s performance near the end of Game 6 and think he could make a little more than league minimum this summer after getting one of those deals this past offseason.

Unfortunately for Terry, that wasn’t how he performed for most of the postseason. JET was much better in his last playoffs with the Houston Rockets, when he got over 24 minutes per game and made 31.6 percent of his threes.

JET needed time to get off the runway against Toronto. He shot 31.6 percent from the field this time around, and made just 18.2 percent of his three-pointers. Terry only played 11.3 minutes per game, and in that time averaged 2.5 points and 1.5 rebounds.

Terry wants to keep playing, and it makes a lot of sense for the Bucks to bring him back on another minimum deal. His age and performance for most of the postseason makes it highly unlikely he gets anything more than vet minimum though, even if Terry spent most of the season winning over Bucks fans.

Michael Beasley

Like Jason Terry, Michael Beasley both did not have an excellent postseason and did not get a ton of opportunities to play. Despite his assurances he was fine, there were points towards the end of the season that made it appear Beas was less than fully healthy.

Beasley had a fantastic first season in Milwaukee, where he provided a positive influence to the young Bucks and brought a ton of energy from the bench. The one problem with Beasley is that he’s not an established shooter, despite his 60 percent shooting from deep in the playoffs.

To maximize Giannis’ potential, the Bucks would be wise to surround him with players who can shoot. Beasley is at his best with the ball in his hands, and he’s a streaky three-point shooter.

The instant offense Beasley can provide is a valuable contribution when Giannis is sitting down, but those two don’t make a ton of sense alongside each other. Unfortunately for Beas, there aren’t a ton of non-Giannis minutes to go around in Milwaukee.

It makes the most sense for Beas to stay in Milwaukee, but the Bucks likely wouldn’t want to pay much more than veteran minimum to retain him, considering his lack of fit with Giannis. Beasley struggled to make shots around the basket in the postseason, which hurts his stock considering how important those shots are to his game.

With forwards who have skill-sets more optimal for modern offenses available in free agency, there likely won’t be a huge market for Beasley this summer.

Tony Snell

Speaking of players with very modern skill-sets, Tony Snell proved in the playoffs he’s an ideal three-and-d player. Snell started all six playoff games, and probably ranks as the third- or fourth-best Buck in the postseason.

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Although he scored just 10 points per game, Snell did so while stretching the floor for the Bucks and making life difficult for DeMar DeRozan on the other end. Snell shot 50 percent from the field and 51.6 percent from three-point range, and might’ve had a 50-50-90 postseason had he ever gotten to the line.

Snell also added 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game, which are decent contributions for someone who handles the ball as little as Snell tends to. Tony Snell isn’t going to make a good team into a contender, but he’s a valuable depth piece who can slot in as a starter on the wing without hurting a team.

The interesting wrinkle for Snell is that he’s a restricted free agent, meaning Milwaukee could match any deal he signs with another team. Since Snell enjoyed his greatest success with the Bucks, he may pull a Khris Middleton and sign with Milwaukee early without taking a lot of offers from other teams.

There’s no guarantee that happens though, and it’s certainly within Snell’s rights as a free agent to see what’s out there for him. Milwaukee has a lot of money tied up going forward, but Snell was a crucial contributor both in the regular season and the playoffs, and he retained his starting role even with Middleton back on the team.

Next: How Does Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Playoff Play Rank In Franchise History?

Wing players who can shoot and play defense are valuable commodities in today’s NBA. After proving that he can do those things on the big stage of the playoffs, Tony Snell should be able to command some serious contract offers this summer, potentially north of eight figures per season.

Ti Windisch