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This week is going to be hectic, everybody.
This will kick off a truly wild week for the NBA:
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) November 15, 2020
- Trades are allowed to take place beginning Monday at noon.
- The NBA Draft is Wednesday night.
- Free agency begins at 6pm Friday.
- Contracts can be signed Sunday at noon. https://t.co/M4JEnf66E7
The Milwaukee Bucks need to be as busy on the phones as NBA fans will be busy refreshing their social media feeds. We covered how the Bucks aren’t likely to make any huge splashes in the trade market, as well as how constrained they are with the salary cap and the amended CBA for the 2020-21 season. No matter which way you slice it, Milwaukee has a tough task ahead for the next seven days.
As it stands, the Bucks have been credibly linked to only a handful of players. Indiana’s Victor Oladipo is one, as are Bogdan Bogdanovic and Harrison Barnes out of Sacramento, all from Zach Lowe. The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor has reported interest in San Antonio’s Patty Mills and the Houston tandem of PJ Tucker and Robert Covington. There have been other rumors with varying levels of realism, and there are sure to be more names coming out in the coming days...and hours.
Around the league, the Los Angeles Lakers are wasting no time to try and reload for a repeat season, and have been linked to the soon-to-be-rebuilding Oklahoma City Thunder and by this time tomorrow will likely acquire Dennis Schroder. Schroder was theorized as a possible target for Milwaukee, but this deal may also be a reasonable benchmark for evaluating proposals to other teams involving Eric Bledsoe.
Not directly relevant to the Bucks, but this reported deal (Danny Green/#28 overall for Schroder) could also be used as a barometer for any prospective Eric Bledsoe trades.
— Mitchell Maurer (@Mitchell_NBA) November 15, 2020
If you think Bledsoe is in a similar tier as Schroder, maybe Bucks could get similar value somehow? https://t.co/nGYGVWoAHU
The next week is a major opportunity for the Bucks to make up for mistakes made in years’ past and reinforce themselves to make a run at the NBA Finals. Of course, the biggest move of the offseason is convincing Giannis Antetokounmpo to sign a max extension...but the moves made in the meantime may have strong influence on that decision, upon which the fate of the franchise rests for the foreseeable future.
We’ll be sure to provide updates as they become available, but be sure to follow us on Twitter for news as it happens.