Last season, the Milwaukee Bucks had a disappointing campaign despite the addition of a star like Damian Lillard. They suffered a first-round exit in the playoffs for the second straight year, raising concerns about their roster profile. Paul Pierce believes the Bucks will go nowhere unless they add a third All-Star level player alongside Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
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On the Ticket & the Truth show with Kevin Garnett, Pierce opined that the Bucks’ roster looks inferior to the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers, especially after Khris Middleton’s injury woes.
Middleton has missed 88 games over the last two seasons. He is recovering from multiple ankle surgeries but is expected to be ready for the next season.
However, Pierce is unsure if he will be available throughout the season and if his game will be good enough to compete in the East. Therefore, Garnett pointed out that the Bucks need a two-way star like Mikal Bridges to form an elite trio with Lillard and Antetokounmpo.
Pierce then told Garnett that he isn’t necessarily talking about forming a so-called “Big Three” with three superstar-level players. He suggested that the Bucks add someone who is not a perennial All-Star, but is almost at that level.
He then cited the examples of Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday and their center Kristaps Porzingis, who didn’t officially make an All-Star team last season but had a similar winning impact for the 2024 champs.
“Your third piece gotta be a damn near All-Star. You gotta be fringe All-Star. Jrue Holiday wasn’t an All-Star this year but borderline. Porzingis wasn’t All-Star but borderline. Your third best player got to be a borderline All-Star like he can make it any given year.”
The Bucks will need someone like these players to compete against the Celts and 76ers.
Philly added Paul George as their third All-Star level player alongside Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. The Knicks are also ready with their Nova trio and Karl-Anthony Towns.
The Bucks sorely missed a shot-creator last season when the chips were down. Therefore, a strong third offensive option would have helped them a lot.
But did they address the need during the offseason?
The Milwaukee Bucks’ offseason wasn’t the most inspiring
The Bucks landed Taurean Prince, Delon Wright, and Gary Trent Jr during the summer. While these three players are nowhere near the “borderline All-Star” level that Pierce was alluding to, they still are solid role players.
Trent Jr. can be a threatening long-range shooter, but the team lacks the punch at the Wing positions, considering that Middleton can play more of a shooting guard role. Thus, the Bucks will once again depend heavily on the duo of Lillard and Antetokounmpo, who are still figuring out how to work together.
Last season, they abruptly fired Head Coach Adrian Griffin and brought Doc Rivers around midseason. This season, Rivers will finally have a chance to conduct a training camp before the season which will help him to understand the team tendencies and its needs.
However, unlike last season, the Bucks aren’t being touted as the contenders in the East. They will need much better chemistry from their superstar duo and a strong effort from the newly acquired role players to change that perception.
