As of November 12th, the Milwaukee Bucks have the second-worst record in the league. Nobody within the team and experts anticipated a similar record going into the season. With a full training camp of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard under coach Doc Rivers, many people had the Bucks among the top four teams in the East. Yet, 10 games into the season, they are just 2-8, and look like a team with more questions than answers. That is with Giannis averaging 31 points, and Dame averaging 26 points. What is next for the Milwaukee Bucks? Can they turn things around? However, perhaps the biggest question is Giannis’ future with the team.
Giannis’ Future Will Be Decided in the Next 3 Weeks
The next three weeks are extremely important for the Milwaukee Bucks. They have a stretch of 11 games, eight of which are at home, mostly against teams that were in the lottery or in the play-in last season. They play Toronto at home, Detroit at home, on the road against Charlotte, then at home against Houston, Chicago, Indiana, and Charlotte.
After that, they go on the road in Miami, home vs. Washington, on the road against Detroit, and home against Atlanta. Their big challenge in the next three weeks will be against Boston at the beginning of December. At that point, they will either turn things around or sink even lower in the standings.
Why the Next 11 Games are Important?
The Bucks have a chance to turn things around, and if they go 8-3, 9-2, or even 7-4 in the next 11 games, things will look differently the next time they play the Boston Celtics. Yet, if they go 5-6, 6-5, or 4-7, the Bucks will be in a dire situation. At that point, they will play more than 21 games, which is more than a quarter of a season. If they are still outside of the play-in at that point, things will quickly escalate. That means Giannis will start having more interviews where he talks about effort and competing, and might even turn into a trade request.
Can the Bucks Improve their Roster?
The challenge for the Milwaukee Bucks is that they do not have a pick to trade for the foreseeable future. Their next tradeable pick is a first-round pick in 2031. If they put that pick on the table, teams might be interested. But is Milwaukee willing to put that pick on the line and risk its entire future knowing that Giannis might leave in a year, two, or three, and they will be without assets to rebuild?
On the last episode of The Hoop Collective, Brian Windhorst mentioned that the Bucks have been in talks with other teams, but not about Giannis or Dame. The Bucks do want to get something and improve their roster, but they have very few assets to trade. It is also worth mentioning that since the Bucks do not have the rights to their next several picks, trading Giannis will be challenging. That is unless they find a way to get some of their picks back via trades. Nevertheless, by December, we will have a clearer picture of where the Bucks are heading. If they turn things around and go on a nice winning streak, things might look differently. If not, it will be time to panic in Milwaukee.
