The Milwaukee Bucks are chasing several free agents, but Bennedict Mathurin has not been one of them. And for good reason. Despite the guard logjam, Sam Vecenie recently floated the Bucks as a "fun" suitor for the restricted free agent. Speaking on a recent episode of the Game Theory podcast, Vecenie made a quick case.
"Milwaukee could be kind of fun just as like a talent bet, right?"
Mathurin doesn't fit with the current Bucks
To be clear, Vecenie wasn't making a vehement case for the Bucks to chase Mathurin. It was a blink and you miss it mention. Still, given how Milwaukee's roster looks, even that feels like too much.
The Bucks have too many guards as is. Tyler Herro, Ryan Rollins, Brayden Burries, Kevin Porter Jr., Caris LeVert, Kasparas Jakucionis, and AJ Green are all on the payroll. It wouldn't make sense for Milwaukee to chase a high-profile guard unless they are giving up next to nothing in a deal, which feels far-fetched in this case.
On paper, Mathurin has plenty of potential. The recently turned 24-year-old would fit snugly in the Bucks' new youth-focused timeline, but there isn't a clear role for him. As Vecenie pointed out in the episode, Mathurin is a nice sixth man. The Bucks don't need another bench guard who will come in and take away opportunities from the potential-filled Brayden Burries.
This one just feels like it would be confusing for the Milwaukee Bucks if they went through with it rather than solving an actual roster need.
Bucks should remain interested in a forward
In recent weeks, chatter has persisted that the Milwaukee Bucks are looking at beefing up one of the forward spots, targeting players like Peyton Watson and Jonathan Kuminga. Either of those players would make far more sense for Milwaukee than Mathurin, given how thin the Bucks are at forward after trading away both Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis.
Ideally, the Bucks would land one of those two in a sign-and-trade while shipping out one or two of their guards as they try to trim it down to the legal limit. The best-case scenario is that the Bucks acquire Watson, while the Clippers, who are among the teams also chasing the forward, shift their focus to retaining Mathurin.
Time will tell how this saga ends, but Mathurin appears to be stuck in the mud while teams like the Bucks and Clippers remain focused on landing Peyton Watson.
Stay tuned for more Milwaukee Bucks analysis.
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