Milwaukee Bucks General Manager Jon Horst certainly didn't care if Damian Lillard wanted to play for the Miami Heat when he made the trade to acquire him. Now, if he has his sights set on Ja Morant on the trade market, he must bring that same energy. Per Yahoo Sports' Kelly Iko, Morant and his camp prefer Miami over spots like Milwaukee, Sacramento, and Minnesota.
Bucks may have to repeat history if they want Morant
Damian Lillard ended up in Milwaukee because Miami didn't want to cough up the assets that the Portland Trail Blazers wanted. If the Heat do the same, as they have been clutching their assets for years hoping that Giannis Antetokounmpo becomes available, it's not far-fetched to think that the Bucks could once again steal a star guard from them.
For one, the Milwaukee Bucks are more desperate than Miami right now. The Heat are currently two games above .500 and own the eighth seed. Meanwhile, the Bucks are all the way down in the 11th spot with a 17-23 record. Miami is staying afloat, while Milwaukee is sinking deeper and deeper with each passing game.
The desperation in the 414 should only be amplified following a brutal 33-point home loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, who were incredibly short-handed. It feels increasingly likely that they might dangle their 2031 or 2032 first-round picks ahead of the NBA Trade Deadline in hopes of a major swing to jumpstart a turnaround.
None of this is to say that the Milwaukee Bucks need to get Ja Morant by any means necessary. He is far from the ideal trade target. Sure, getting someone who has proven they can run an offense may help the Bucks in the non-Giannis Antetokounmpo minutes, but a small, lacking defender isn't the magic fix to any of the team's other glaring issues.
However, it's clear that the Milwaukee Bucks have to do something. As constructed, the team is doing nothing but digging itself into a deeper hole. Whether it's Ja Morant, Zach LaVine, Michael Porter Jr., or someone else, the Bucks need someone new to walk through that door. If they feel like Morant is the answer, they won't be afraid to go get him despite his Miami dreams.
Morant is under team control for two seasons after this one, so it's not like the Bucks would risk him walking after this season. Unless he flat-out states he's not coming to Milwaukee, the Bucks cannot be ruled out of the Ja Morant discussion.
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