Recent comments made by Giannis Antetokounmpo have everyone in a frenzy about his future with the Milwaukee Bucks.
On an episode of the 48 Minutes podcast from Bleav, the Greek Freak reiterated that he wants to win above all else, and while he’d love to do it in Milwaukee, he’d go elsewhere if he felt like there was no shot to do so with the Bucks. He’s been saying this for years, so it’s nothing new, but the NBA world, as usual, took it and ran with it, flooding social media with trade talk.
These comments are to keep pressure on the front office to make sure they never get complacent as long as Giannis is there, which is fine. General Manager Jon Horst should always be attempting to improve the team’s roster. What this team needs right now is a pure scorer who can come into the game and put points on the board in a hurry.
In that regard, there are three targets management should circle on their big board, whether it’s at the NBA trade deadline or before the 2023-24 season.
Milwaukee Bucks Trade Target – Norman Powell
Earlier this off-season, Yahoo! Sports insider Jake Fischer reported that LA Clippers shooting guard Norman Powell was available in trade talks, notably for point guard Chris Paul before he got sent to the Golden State Warriors. If the LA Clippers are indeed dangling Powell’s name in trade talks, the Bucks should not question their methods and instead go after the two guard.
Powell would be the perfect fix to Milwaukee’s bench-scoring concerns. Over the past few years, Milwaukee’s bench has failed to consistently put points on the board, especially in the postseason. This has largely been due to a lack of reliable shot creators, something that Powell would clean up immediately, considering that is one of his strong suits as a player.
Over the last four years, Powell has cemented himself as a legitimate scorer, having averaged an eye-catching 17.6 points per contest while shooting 47.8 percent from the floor and 40.7 percent from 3-point land. A player like that could undoubtedly be a difference-maker for the Bucks, giving them a go-to scorer off of the bench who could actually provide some consistent shot creation.
Financially, Powell will make $18 million this coming season, and he also has two years left on his deal after that, ensuring that he’d be locked up for the foreseeable future. Anything less than $20 million is somewhat reasonable for the Bucks, so this isn’t an issue from that perspective, but it’s unclear what the Clippers may ask for him. Milwaukee should find out.
Rather than essentially living and dying by the Big 3’s production, Powell would give the Bucks an excellent complementary scorer who could help lessen the load from them nightly.
Milwaukee Bucks Trade Target – Buddy Hield
Up until last season’s NBA Trade Deadline, the Los Angeles Lakers were linked to Indiana Pacers guard Buddy Hield and center Myles Turner. Per ESPN’s Zach Lowe, the Pacers would have done the deal if the Lakers offered two first round picks, in all likelihood, but they didn’t. It would be a wise move for the Milwaukee Bucks to see what it would take to get Hield.
There’s no questioning how seamlessly Hield would fit in with the Milwaukee Bucks. He is one of the best long-distance shooters in the entire NBA, having shot 40.2 percent on 7.7 attempts per game in his career thus far. He’s also averaged 16.1 points in that same timeframe, meaning the two-guard would give the Bucks the perfect scoring and shooting combination they need.
Over the years, the Bucks have surrounded Giannis Antetokounmpo with perimeter shooters like Kyle Korver, Bryn Forbes, and Grayson Allen. The sole purpose of those players was to shoot the ball when Antetokounmpo kicked it out to them, and they all fared decently well in that role, but Hield would take it to a new level. The wide-open looks he would receive would be bountiful.
Hield is on the books for an expiring $18.6 million this coming season. If the Bucks legitimately want to fix a glaring hole on their roster in the scoring department and add one of the top 3-point shooters in the game today, that’s a reasonable salary. The Bucks should call their divisional rival and see what it would take to get Hield in a green jersey.
Milwaukee Bucks Trade Target – Collin Sexton
Collin Sexton is someone Bucks fans have wanted for a long time. Per Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer, the guard was made available for trade via the Utah Jazz earlier this off-season, which had fans once again clamoring for the Bucks to make an offer. Sexton would fix an obvious issue on this Milwaukee roster in their lack of complementary scoring.
Sexton checks off a lot of the same boxes as Powell in the sense that he can score the ball at will. For his career, he’s averaged 19 points while shooting 46.4 percent from the floor and 38 percent from 3-point land. The 24-year-old could act as Milwaukee’s sixth man and backup floor general, giving them a much-needed scoring punch off of the bench.
Adding a combo guard like Sexton could also be the key to getting the best out of Jrue Holiday for the playoffs. If the Bucks will continue to have Holiday guard the opposing best player, they need someone next to him to alleviate the scoring load. Sexton could do just that, sliding Holiday to the two-guard slot to allow him to focus more on his matchup while the former scores the ball.
Sexton is currently in the second year of a four-year deal and will make $17.3 million this season. That puts him right around the same range as these other targets, meaning he is attainable if the Bucks genuinely have an interest in him, which they absolutely should. Sexton could the exactly what the Milwaukee Bucks need right now.
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