How will the two newest Milwaukee Bucks help the defending champs?

It has certainly been an eventful week for the Milwaukee Bucks, to say the least.

They started things off with a bang after officially announcing the signing of veteran center DeMarcus Cousins, which was a solid move to bolster their frontcourt depth. Unfortunately, bringing in Cousins foreshadowed bad news for starting center Brook Lopez, who underwent surgery for his ailing back soreness soon after. When everything seemed quiet, the team made a surprising pair of moves Friday by releasing rookie Georgios Kalaitzakis and then subsequently signing Wesley Matthews to take his place on the roster. Cousins and Matthews are both solid additions for the Bucks, but how will they help contribute to Milwaukee’s title chase?

Can DeMarcus Cousins and Wesley Matthews help the Milwaukee Bucks?

In short, yes, both Cousins and Matthews bring respective attributes to the table that will be useful for the Bucks this season. These two veterans will provide much-needed depth for the champs as they have dealt with an array of injuries early on.

As previously mentioned, the signing of Cousins was made to give Milwaukee center depth following Lopez’s back surgery. With the team’s typical starter sidelined with no timetable to return in sight, Cousins was the best possible free agent available to give the team insurance at the position. The 31-year-old undoubtedly made a strong impression in his team debut against the Charlotte Hornets earlier this week as he provided a spark in his 14-and-a half minutes off the bench just days after being signed.

Cousins will be a key cog in the second unit while Bobby Portis fills in as the temporary starting center. While no one expects him to replicate the excellent production that Portis would typically provide off the bench, Cousins is more than capable of scoring, rebounding, and providing some toughness out on the floor. If the big man can keep things consistent in his 15 minutes per game, he will be huge for this team. This opportunity could undeniably help him get his NBA career back on the right track after a few rough seasons due to an unfortunate assortment of injuries.

While Milwaukee signing Cousins was surprising, it seemed like something that could happen given that Lopez had been sidelined for all but one game this season. On the other hand, this waiving of Kalaitzakis to bring in Matthews was far more surprising because it came out of left field. Yet, after taking a current look at Milwaukee’s bench rotation, bringing in a familiar face like Matthews does make some sense. The Bucks are missing Semi Ojeleye as he battles through a calf injury, Jordan Nwora is struggling mightily, Donte DiVincenzo is still out, and Rodney Hood is currently having his worst season as a professional. In theory, Matthews should help that group.

Matthews should be able to adjust quickly to playing with the team, given that he was a full-time starter with them during the 2019-20 season. He knows the Mike Budenholzer system and what it takes to play alongside players like Giannis Antetokoumpo and Khris Middleton. Just as he did back then, Matthews will be tasked with letting it fly from 3-point range while playing reputable defense. How sizeable of a role he will play remains in question, but the veteran could surely help if he is still capable of doing both of those things. At 35-years-old, it will be interesting to see how much Matthews has left in the tank after going unsigned this past offseason.

On paper, both of these look like good moves by the Bucks, but time will tell how they look as the season progresses.