MILWAUKEE, Wis. — Despite having few opportunities to make changes to his roster this offseason, Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst has done a great job of finding value where it counts.
The arrival of talents such as Gary Trent Jr., Delon Wright and Taurean Prince via free agency and the selection of young prospects AJ Johnson and Tyler Smith in the 2024 NBA Draft have added depth to the Bucks’ talented core of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard and Khris Middleton. With that, the Bucks have all the ingredients they need to concoct something special for the upcoming NBA season.
With so much talent throughout the team, let’s take a look at some of the Bucks’ best out-and-out players heading into the 2024-25 season.
Without a doubt, signing 25-year-old Gary Trent Jr. for $2.1 million, one year was the Bucks’ best offseason move.
With a real question mark at guard after Mailk Beasley left in free agency, the Bucks were able to acquire Trent on one of the most team-friendly contracts in the NBA.
Last season with the Toronto Raptors, Trent averaged 13.7 points, 1.7 assists and 1.1 steals per game. More importantly, he made 39 percent of his three-point attempts, giving Milwaukee a much-needed three-point shot boost.
His $2.1 million contract is a far cry from the $18.6 million he earned last season on his player option with Toronto, making it a great deal for the Bucks considering he’ll most likely start alongside Damian Lillard in the backcourt.
Speaking of Lillard, Trent will be reuniting with the former longtime Portland Trail Blazers player after last playing with him from 2018-21. During his time with Lillard and the Trail Blazers, Trent shot 40 percent from three-point range, where he had plenty of open opportunities alongside Lillard.
It’s clear to me that Trent’s production isn’t that of a minimum-salary player, not based on his recent production. He’s arguably one of the Bucks’ best signings in recent memory, and could be the centerpiece needed to help formulate another title run similar to the 2020-21 season when the Bucks won it all.
It’s hard to argue that a player who is set to make $48.8 million this season could be underpaid, but that’s exactly the case when it comes to Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo for the 2024-25 NBA season.
Based on other contracts of other big-name talents around the league, Antetokounmpo doesn’t even crack the top 10 in earnings this year, coming in with the 12th-highest salary behind Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal, Jaylen Brown, Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard and Jimmy Butler.
Sure, with some of those names mentioned above — like Curry, Jokic, and Embiid — you could make the argument that they each deserve similar salaries to the Greek Freak, but most of them don’t come close in terms of the impact they need to have to rack up wins for their respective franchises the way Antetokounmpo does.
You could always argue that Giannis is the best player in the NBA right now. And if you disagree, he’s still a top-three talent.
So the fact that he’s ranked outside the top five, let alone the top 10, in player salaries in 2024-25 is a luxury for the Bucks.
Let me remind you, he is not only one of the most unique talents in the league, but he is also perhaps the best two-way player in the NBA. In his first 11 seasons with the Bucks, Antetokounmpo became a two-time MVP, NBA Finals MVP, 2019-20 Defensive Player of the Year and a six-time All-NBA First Team honoree.
Not to mention he’s coming off a spectacular season. Last year, Antetokounmpo averaged 30.4 points (second in the NBA), 11.5 rebounds (sixth), 6.5 assists (14th in the NBA), 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks per game, while shooting 61.7 percent from the field (seventh in the NBA). His dominance made him the first player in NBA history to average 30+ points on 60 percent shooting from the field in a season.
Simply put, there is no other talent in the NBA than Giannis. He is one of a kind and as long as he stays healthy, the Bucks have title ambitions.
At the same time, Antetokounmpo won’t stay underrated for long. After this season, his salary will jump to $68.3 million next season and then $73.7 million in 2026-27. But as long as he can stay healthy and help his team make the playoffs and maybe even win another title, he’ll be worth his entire current contract and more.
This one might draw some resistance given that Bobby Portis didn’t have the season Bucks fans expected last season, but I think he should have a bounce-back season in 2024-25.
Set to make $12.8 million this year, Portis enters this season as one of the best backup bigs in all of basketball.
In what some considered a rough season, Portis averaged 13.8 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game on 50.8 percent shooting and 40.7 percent from three-point range over 82 games. He finished third in NBA Sixth Man of the Year voting behind Sacramento Kings point guard Malik Monk and the 2024 NBA Sixth Man of the Year, Minnesota Timberwolves forward Naz Reid.
According to HoopsHypePortis is projected to be the 133rd highest-paid NBA player and 52nd highest-paid forward heading into this season. Given his intensity on the court and ability to do the little things like rebound, set screens, and hit open three-pointers, there’s no denying that he brings immense value as a player who will primarily come off the bench.
As someone who has received Sixth Man of the Year votes three times in the last four seasons, Portis is someone who could easily receive his biggest payday if he declines his player option for the 2025-26 season next offseason.
