Who Should Bucks Look to Trade: Myles Turner or Kel'El Ware?

When the Milwaukee Bucks traded forward Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat this summer, they started over and began building around younger players and draft picks.

One of the players who came back in that deal was center Kel'el Ware, and he now shares the middle with center Myles Turner, who signed with Milwaukee in July 2025.

That gives the Bucks two big men who can shoot from deep and protect the rim, and that is a skill set teams around the league are always hunting for.

Yahoo Sports' Kevin O'Connor wrote on Sunday that front-office executives around the league believe the Bucks could be targeted because of those two centers, and he listed the Celtics, Knicks, Lakers, Pistons, Raptors, 76ers and Timberwolves as teams that should have interest. O'Connor also wrote that it is more realistic that the Bucks would move Turner than Ware.

Both players have the numbers to back it up, as Ware averaged 11.1 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 22.1 minutes per game for Miami last season while making 39.5 percent of his threes.

Turner, in his first season in Milwaukee, averaged 11.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks while making 38.3 percent from deep, but the Bucks finished 32-50 and 11th in the Eastern Conference.

"We're both bigs who can shoot, play down low, defend, and rebound," Ware said at media day, per Brew Hoop.

"So if you have two bigs that are able to do that, that's what you need."

If Milwaukee moves one of them, it should be Turner.

He is 30 years old, and he is set to make about $26.6 million this season on a four-year deal that includes a player option for 2028-29.

Ware is 22 and is making about $4.6 million on his rookie contract, so he lines up with the timeline of a team that just traded its superstar for young talent and picks.

There has already been plenty of talk about Turner as a trade candidate, and his value will likely never be higher for this front office than it is now.

The catch is that Turner's deal includes a 15 percent trade kicker, which makes him more expensive for any team that trades for him, so the Bucks may have to be flexible on what they ask for in return.

Ware is not a sure thing either.

O'Connor noted that he never fully earned the trust of Heat coach Erik Spoelstra because his defensive effort came and went, which is why new coach Taylor Jenkins giving him a longer leash is so important.

If Ware becomes the X-factor many expect, the decision gets much easier.

Milwaukee opens the preseason Monday night against the Timberwolves at Fiserv Forum, and Minnesota is one of the teams O'Connor named.

The early weeks should also help settle who should start at center before the regular season opens Wednesday, Oct. 21, at Washington.

If Ware shows he can defend every night, the Bucks can shop Turner to a contender and keep the younger center who fits their plan.