Report: Bryn Forbes Opts Out, Will Enter Free Agency

The possibility had been widely expected, but the sad news is all the way out there: Bryn Forbes has decided to leave the Milwaukee Bucks, exercising his $2.45M player option and becoming a free agent.

The 6’2” shooting guard signed a two-year deal last offseason, and was one of the several contracts offered by general manager Jon Horst that contained an option on the second year. Forbes played over 19 minutes a game in the regular season and had the best effective FG% of his career (0.618), demonstrating his value as a shooting specialist. He fell out of the playoff rotation after a stellar performance in the first round against Miami; his defensive deficiencies and cold shooting made it necessary to give playing time to other backcourt players. Forbes did nothing to earn fans’ ire; he played hard, gave maximum effort, and made a ton of threes.

The Bucks technically could re-sign Forbes, but because of their cap situation they are only able to offer a 20% raise on his previous salary unless they offer part of the MLE. Neither result seems likely, as this is probably Forbes’ best opportunity to earn a decent-sized contract and the Bucks aren’t in a position to pay him what he’ll make on an open market. He earned a ring here, and everybody with the Bucks will tip their cap and wish him well.

Free agency starts on August 2 at 5:00pm (central).