For the first time since 2012-13, the Milwaukee Bucks will enter a season without Giannis Antetokounmpo on the roster.
One of the league’s biggest “will they/won’t they” sagas finally ended just before the draft in June, when the Bucks sent the two-time MVP forward to the Miami Heat for a trade package headlined by guard Tyler Herro and a haul of draft picks.
How will this young roster fare in Season 1 post-Giannis? And are more moves on the way for Milwaukee?
ESPN’s staff of experts is looking back at the offseason and taking an early look at the 2026-27 season for all 30 teams, with 30 pieces — one for every team — rolling out each weekday through Sept. 18. We’re answering the biggest looming questions, evaluating X factors and much more for all 30 teams.
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Offseason at a glance
Key additions: Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakucionis, Caris LeVert
Key retentions:Gary Trent Jr.
Key subtractions: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bobby Portis
After 13 seasons, the Giannis era ended in Milwaukee with a mega trade to the Heat — and the 2026-27 season will mark a major shift for the rebuilding franchise. The Bucks hired coach Taylor Jenkins to establish a culture. They added four new players from Miami, including former All-Star and Wisconsin native Tyler Herro, and selected Brayden Burries with the No. 10 pick in June. The Bucks will enter the season with an ill-fitting mix of players and low expectations, but they have the luxury to see what sticks long term. — Jamal Collier
In their long-awaited trade of Antetokounmpo, the Bucks landed a strong haul of draft picks and decently intriguing young players from Miami. Could they have set themselves up even better for the future if they’d traded their leading career scorer a year earlier? Probably. But taking this offseason in a vacuum, Milwaukee got its biggest move mostly right. — Kram
What we learned over the past few months
From Ben Golliver’s offseason lessons piece: The Giannis trade was only the beginning of Milwaukee’s pain.
Let’s be sure to extend maximum sympathy to Bucks fans, who are still processing Antetokounmpo’s long-anticipated departure. It always hurts to lose a franchise icon, and this one is doubly painful because Milwaukee and Miami engaged in several playoff battles in recent years.
Though Antetokounmpo’s exit was preceded by years of trade rumors, the Bucks didn’t slide smoothly into a rebuilding effort. The good news: They sent Portis’ contract to the Heat. The bad news: They haven’t yet found a taker for Myles Turner, who was signed to a four-year, $107 million contract last summer in a failed attempt to appease Antetokounmpo. The really bad news: They inexplicably signed Trent to a four-year, $64 million contract this month after one of the worst seasons of his career, a deal that is already under investigation by the NBA. — Golliver
The big question: What will define success this season?
The Bucks are in a rebuild but don’t own their 2027 draft pick. (With changing lottery odds, tanking wouldn’t make sense, anyway.) With up to 12 players having a case for legitimate playing time, will the franchise prioritize developing younger players such as Ryan Rollins and Burries, and turn the keys over to Herro, Turner and Trent to stay competitive in a deep Eastern Conference? The Bucks could be chasing a spot in the 9-10 play-in if all goes well. But in the post-Antetokounmpo era, the franchise will be looking to find a long-term direction. — Collier
Basketball Power Index rank: No. 28
Here are the predicted Net Points per 100 possessions for the Bucks’ top-seven players for the 2026-27 season:
I like to look at how often a team wins when a player plays over a long period of time. It captures quality and durability, albeit imperfectly. I was surprised that this new-look Bucks team had players whose sum of team wins ranked 17th leaguewide, ahead of teams such as the Minnesota Timberwolves and Dallas Mavericks. Based on this, I still think the Bucks will be bad, but not as bad as their 28th ranking in BPI. — Dean Oliver
Read about how Net Points works here.
Biggest X factor
Of the four players Milwaukee acquired from Miami in the Antetokounmpo trade, Herro and Jaquez are mostly known quantities at this point, and 2025 first-round pick Jakucionis will have to fight for playing time with a big group of quality guards. But 2024 first-round pick Ware has untapped upside and a clearer path to playing time, with only veterans Turner and Kyle Kuzma currently ahead of him on the center/power forward depth chart.
Ware can score inside, make 3-pointers and protect the rim, but a lack of consistency meant he never fully gained Erik Spoelstra’s trust in Miami. With the Bucks, he should have plenty of opportunity to find firmer footing as a foundational building block. — Kram
Betting insight from our expert
Bet to make ahead of the season: Under 24.5 wins (+110)
The Bucks had a net rating of minus-7.7 points per game in 46 games without Antetokounmpo last season. Though this season’s lineup will be different, the Bucks embraced a rebuild when they traded Antetokounmpo this offseason and last season’s “without Giannis” numbers make a reasonable estimate of their expected level this season. During the past four NBA seasons, none of the 16 teams with point differentials worse than minus-7.5 won more than 22 games, with an average of 19.2 wins. — AndréSnellings
Odds by DraftKings Sportsbookat time of publication.
Source: www.espn.com
