The Milwaukee Bucks could use another small forward, and while Thanasis Antetokounmpo is one on paper, he's likely not the answer. According to league insiders Marc Stein and Jake Fischer, the Bucks are expected to sign Thanasis to a deal if Giannis Antetokounmpo stays in town. With it looking more and more likely that Giannis will stay in Milwaukee, this feels inevitable.
The Bucks will likely welcome back Thanasis Antetokounmpo
This shouldn't be surprising. Prior to last season, Thanasis was on Milwaukee's roster for five straight seasons. The only reason he wasn't with the group last season was because he suffered an Achilles tear in the offseason, and it wouldn't have made much sense to bring back a player who would have been on the sidelines for potentially the entire year.
Even then, Thanasis was around Milwaukee all season, oftentimes courtside to catch Bucks games and support younger brother Giannis. Now that he's been cleared to return to basketball activities, Thanasis will likely be much closer to the action, reclaiming his place on the sidelines as one of the team's biggest (and most consistent) energizers.
On paper, Thanasis is a small forward, which the Milwaukee Bucks do need, as Taurean Prince stands as the lone true three this roster has. However, just like the prior five seasons, the odds of the forward actually cracking the rotation are slim. He will be the ultimate break glass in case of emergency depth piece, scarcely seeing the floor outside of mop-up duty.
If this does indeed happen, there will be some people upset. It's been that way for several years now. However, as the 15th man on the roster, especially at a position of need, who will help keep the team's star player happy, there's little to pick apart with this move if it does go down. As always, it will be the cheapest deal possible, so there will be no financial burden for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Even if they do sign Thanasis, the Milwaukee Bucks cannot call it a complete offseason. This team still could use another ball-handler in the backcourt and an aforementioned forward. Bringing in Thanasis would be fine, but not if it costs the Bucks the opportunity to beef up either of those positions with players who could play bigger roles. Milwaukee is always aggressive, so that likely won't be the case.
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