Bucks offseason keeps getting nicer....Sign Boykins

[pearljammer10]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=5477893

I really like what the Bucks have done this offseason. They kind of went under the radar. I think, if everything plays out right, they'll be fighting for the 4th spot and home court advantage.

[celticsclay]

I like the Maggette move, but I am surprised you are impressed by Boykins. I am kind of surprised Boykins signed anywhere.

[snively]

The Bucks just wanted to see more of the Rondo post-up offense.

Seriously, why didn't they try to keep Ridnour?  Pretty big drop to Boykins and Dooling.  Jennings better be more consistent than he was.

[celticsclay]

The Bucks just wanted to see more of the Rondo post-up offense.

Seriously, why didn't they try to keep Ridnour?  Pretty big drop to Boykins and Dooling.  Jennings better be more consistent than he was.

[wdleehi]

Except that today came out that Bogut will not be ready to start the season.

[Roy H.]

I can't say that I've been all that impressed with the Bucks this off-season.  Their three biggest signings were all bad.  They've committed a ton of long-term money to mediocre players in Salmons and Maggette.  Worse, they signed Drew Gooden -- a no-defense PF with a bad attitude -- to a long-term deal.  These deals total around $95 million in long-term money, and are going to seriously restrict their ability to build around Bogut and Jennings. 

Their smaller potatoes signings -- Dooling, CDR, and Boynkins -- were fine, but I can't give them credit for basically sabotaging their franchise.

[pearljammer10]

How can you deem the as "sabotaging their franchise?"

The Bucks are young, have a great starting line up, and have gained nice depth for their bench.

Jennings/Boykins/Dooling
Salmons/CDR
Maggette/Delfino
Gooden/Mbah a Moute
Bogut/Illyasova

The starting lineup, on paper, looks great and can score in the half court or on the run. Mbah Moute and Illyasova are very underrated. The rest of the guys are good veteran role players. All they need is a back up center and they have a nice little thing going on. I would hardly....hardly say this team has been "sabotaged".

[LooseCannon]

The Bucks just wanted to see more of the Rondo post-up offense.

Don't you mean the Nate Robinson post-up offense?

[GreenEnvy]

How can you deem the as "sabotaging their franchise?"

The Bucks are young, have a great starting line up, and have gained nice depth for their bench.

Jennings/Boykins/Dooling
Salmons/CDR
Maggette/Delfino
Gooden/Mbah a Moute
Bogut/Illyasova

The starting lineup, on paper, looks great and can score in the half court or on the run. Mbah Moute and Illyasova are very underrated. The rest of the guys are good veteran role players. All they need is a back up center and they have a nice little thing going on. I would hardly....hardly say this team has been "sabotaged".

My guess is Roy is referring to the several large contracts they overpaid for?

I personally think it was a good idea, because Milwaukee will never really attract huge max-contract superstars anyway. They need to work through the draft and sign good players.

I have Milwaukee as the 5th best team in the East (ahead of Atlanta). The problem with them is they lack a superstar. They don't even have an all-star really (Bogut?). So although they have a nice roster top to bottom with no weak spots, they have no go-to player. That will hurt them against the great teams.

[guava_wrench]

How can you deem the as "sabotaging their franchise?"

The Bucks are young, have a great starting line up, and have gained nice depth for their bench.

Jennings/Boykins/Dooling
Salmons/CDR
Maggette/Delfino
Gooden/Mbah a Moute
Bogut/Illyasova

The starting lineup, on paper, looks great and can score in the half court or on the run. Mbah Moute and Illyasova are very underrated. The rest of the guys are good veteran role players. All they need is a back up center and they have a nice little thing going on. I would hardly....hardly say this team has been "sabotaged".

I consider Salmons, Maggette and Gooden to be just mediocre starters.

They need Jennings to be a star.

Is Redd no longer under contract?

[Who]

The Bucks just wanted to see more of the Rondo post-up offense.

Seriously, why didn't they try to keep Ridnour?  Pretty big drop to Boykins and Dooling.  Jennings better be more consistent than he was.

Ridnour outplayed Jennings for large portions of last season. He is a major (short term) loss.

[Roy H.]

How can you deem the as "sabotaging their franchise?"

The Bucks are young, have a great starting line up, and have gained nice depth for their bench.

Jennings/Boykins/Dooling
Salmons/CDR
Maggette/Delfino
Gooden/Mbah a Moute
Bogut/Illyasova

The starting lineup, on paper, looks great and can score in the half court or on the run. Mbah Moute and Illyasova are very underrated. The rest of the guys are good veteran role players. All they need is a back up center and they have a nice little thing going on. I would hardly....hardly say this team has been "sabotaged".

As I said:

Their three biggest signings were all bad.  They've committed a ton of long-term money to mediocre players in Salmons and Maggette.  Worse, they signed Drew Gooden -- a no-defense PF with a bad attitude -- to a long-term deal.  These deals total around $95 million in long-term money, and are going to seriously restrict their ability to build around Bogut and Jennings.  

You're right, the Bucks have a nice young core.  Rather than build around that core with solid (cheap) role players, they committed $95 million, giving long-term contracts to Drew Gooden (who has been bouncing around the league), John Salmons (ditto), and Corey Maggette (who Golden State wanted to get rid of as soon as they re-signed).

Now, when it's time to re-sign their young core to long-term contracts, the Bucks aren't going to have nearly as much flexibility to do so as they should.  

Also, I don't see any starting lineup that includes Maggette, Salmons, and Gooden as "great".

[Birdbrain]

How can you deem the as "sabotaging their franchise?"

The Bucks are young, have a great starting line up, and have gained nice depth for their bench.

Jennings/Boykins/Dooling
Salmons/CDR
Maggette/Delfino
Gooden/Mbah a Moute
Bogut/Illyasova

The starting lineup, on paper, looks great and can score in the half court or on the run. Mbah Moute and Illyasova are very underrated. The rest of the guys are good veteran role players. All they need is a back up center and they have a nice little thing going on. I would hardly....hardly say this team has been "sabotaged".

My guess is Roy is referring to the several large contracts they overpaid for?

I personally think it was a good idea, because Milwaukee will never really attract huge max-contract superstars anyway. They need to work through the draft and sign good players.

I have Milwaukee as the 5th best team in the East (ahead of Atlanta). The problem with them is they lack a superstar. They don't even have an all-star really (Bogut?). So although they have a nice roster top to bottom with no weak spots, they have no go-to player. That will hurt them against the great teams.

While I agree w/ Roy's premise regarding the overall talent of the signings (mediocre at best) I fall in line more w/ the fact that Milwaukee only has so many options.  They appear to be following the Toronto line of thinking by signing anyone that will actually give them the time of day.  But w/ Milwaukee you at least have a nice young player (jennings) and very good coach.  If Bogut is not out for too long they have a nice starting lineup and a chance at one of the 4-6 spots in Eastern Conference.

My picks:

Orlando
Miami
Boston
Milwaukee
Chicago
Atlanta
Charlotte
Cleveland

[Snakehead]

I think they could be a sleeper if their new guys buy into the defensive mentality that the team needs.  They are not all historically good defenders.  Jennings should also make a jump, hopefully he will improve his shooting and shot selection now with better offensive players around him.  He was a good defender last year and obviously has a lot of talent.

But yes, they aren't exactly in a great position long term, and they need Bogut.  Bogut brings a lot to the team, he was very strong last year on both ends of the floor. He plays well against us for sure.  GRUSOME arm injury he had, ugh that one still gives me the chills.

[Fafnir]

I think they could be a sleeper if their new guys buy into the defensive mentality that the team needs.  They are not all historically good defenders.  Jennings should also make a jump, hopefully he will improve his shooting and shot selection now with better offensive players around him.  He was a good defender last year and obviously has a lot of talent.

But yes, they aren't exactly in a great position long term, and they need Bogut.  Bogut brings a lot to the team, he was very strong last year on both ends of the floor. He plays well against us for sure.  GRUSOME arm injury he had, ugh that one still gives me the chills.

I don't think Jennings will go from being so incredibly inconsistent to a star in one off season.

Their lack of Ridnour, Bogut's injury, and their meh signings won't help matters either.

It depends on how good New York and Charlotte are next year, but the Bucks are likely to be in a dogfight for the playoffs.