Milwaukee Bucks: 4 storylines to watch for over second half of season

Second storyline to watch for with the Milwaukee Bucks — Who will be their 15th man?

All season long, the Bucks have left their 15th and final roster spot open, due to their aforementioned cap situation.

Now as we’re seeing the buyout market start to emerge with arguably the biggest domino to fall already, that being Blake Griffin going to the Brooklyn Nets, impatient Bucks fans are going to have wait out the next month as moves happen. AS BTBP co-site expert Jordan Treske detailed, the Bucks can’t sign a player until April 7 due to their hard-cap issues.

That, of course, is predicated on the Bucks not being able to make a move and they are certainly between a rock and a hard place as we outlined in the last slide. The question then becomes what can the Bucks find on the buyout and free agent market, even as fellow contenders face similar financial restrictions to that of the Bucks.

For now, the Bucks are able to skate by this problem with the NBA loosening the restrictions on two-way players and their availability. And luckily, outside of Jrue Holiday missing time due to having COVID-19, the Bucks have remained very healthy throughout this season (knocks on wood for that to remain in the second half).

But as they won’t be able to stand first in line to add someone and fill their remaining roster spot, Milwaukee is certainly at a disadvantage and will have to get creative in trying to find the difference maker they seek at this time.

Could they look to the G League where veterans like Alize Johnson, Jeremy Lin and recent Bucks training camp signing, Nik Stauskas, could be worth a look? What about someone like NBA journeyman Glenn Robinson III who was recently waived by the Sacramento Kings before the All-Star break?

There will be certainly bigger and more notable names that hit the buyout market over the coming weeks and especially after the trade deadline. But the Bucks’ inability to sign someone, at least until or after April 7, will make it all the more harder for Bucks fans to see rivals and fellow contenders possibly get richer in the coming weeks.