Winning championships in the NBA is about who has the best player. If you can put the two best players on the basketball court, suddenly the calculus goes from favorable to overwhelming. You can win with a deep team against a solo superstar, but it’s hard; if you have two Top-10 players you’re suddenly inevitable. That’s the path the Milwaukee Bucks have embarked upon in trading for Damian Lillard.
The first few beats for most Bucks fans upon reading the tweet from Adrian Wojnarowski were disbelief and some squinting to verify it was actually Woj. Then stronger emotions rushed in, from shock to joy to triumph. Having a player like Damian Lillard on the team raises the ceiling for this franchise. It’s also a major move to keep a superstar like Giannis Antetokounmpo from looking for greener pastures.
The Bucks lost two starters in this trade
At some point in the euphoria, however, the actual details have to be dealt with. New head coach Adrian Griffin gets a shiny new toy to deploy, yes, but he also has to replace a second starter in Grayson Allen. Lineups that worked the past few years because of Holiday’s defense or Allen’s off-ball movement now have to be rethought. There will be two new starters, and a lot of new questions asked of the rest of the roster.
What will the starting lineup look like after the trade? And how will the Bucks build out the rest of the rotation? Do they have the players on the roster or are more moves still to be made? Let’s answer those questions the best that we can in the aftermath of a blockbuster deal.