Milwaukee Bucks: Kyle Korver, Shaun Livingston would be ideal additions

The Milwaukee Bucks have two open roster spots remaining, and fortifying the team with two high profile veterans would be a wise move.

There are still a host of the Milwaukee Bucks’ reported offseason additions waiting to be officially signed, but that doesn’t prevent a clear picture forming of how the roster will look next season.

Deals for Khris Middleton, Robin Lopez, Wesley Matthews and Thanasis Antetokounmpo have all been agreed, and will likely be made official over the next few days.

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Even at that point, though, the Bucks still have room to further build out their roster, although they have very limited means with which to do so.

With those deals set to push them over the cap, and with the room exception already utilized in signing Lopez, the Bucks are left with only veteran minimum contracts at their disposal.

That scenario generally requires some vision and creativity to find something of value at such a low cost, but it’s undoubtedly an easier task this summer than it’s ever previously been for the Bucks.

Coming off a 60-win season, a trip to the Conference Finals, and with Giannis Antetokounmpo adding ESPYs and NBPA honors to his MVP win in recent days, there’s plenty of reason why many of the remaining free agents would be intrigued by the prospect of joining a Bucks team that looks set to contend once again.

On that front, the Bucks may well be best advised to avoid overthinking when it comes to how those final two roster spots may be used.

Kyle Korver and Shaun Livingston both find themselves on the open market as they approach the final stages of illustrious careers that have involved frequent trips deep into the postseason.

Livingston’s storied spell with the Golden State Warriors came to an end when he was waived this week, while Korver hits free agency after being waived following a recent trade to the Phoenix Suns.

Livingston should still be able to offer steady minutes as a backup guard using his combination of size and high basketball IQ, while Korver’s sharp-shooting continues to hold up, even at 38, providing obvious value to a team where spacing and volume shooting are priorities. Milwaukee’s bargain signing of Matthews should help to cover the gap left by the departure of Malcolm Brogdon, but adding Livingston and Korver would also fuel the by-committee approach the Bucks may end up employing at shooting guard next season.

The Bucks have already been reported as having interest in Korver, and will hope that Mike Budenholzer’s existing relationship with him can prove persuasive. Still, the competition for Korver’s signature will be fiercely competitive, as it would likely prove to be for Livingston too.

As Milwaukee’s season crumbled in a surprising and sudden burst of four straight losses against the Raptors, it was striking just how at sea the young Bucks quickly looked. The hope would be that there’ll be natural growth in that department this season by way of simply having experienced that level of playoff action, but that doesn’t mean general manager Jon Horst can’t further fortify his team with the aim of rounding out the group’s personality and experience level.

The value of George Hill‘s veteran experience came to the fore during the playoff run, and the hope will be that signings such as Matthews and Robin Lopez can prove similarly valuable at that point of the season this time around.

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If the Bucks could add even more experience in the form of Korver and Livingston, experience would certainly no longer be a problem for Milwaukee. Given the limited options left at the Bucks’ disposal at this point in the offseason, an all-out pursuit of both Korver and Livingston should probably be at the forefront of their agenda.

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