The Biggest Roster Problem Bucks Need to Fix as Soon as Possible

This offseason, the Milwaukee Bucks have put together a roster with a mix of veterans and young players as they enter a rebuilding phase. Milwaukee traded away former star power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, and now they are looking for their next franchise leader. 

The Bucks acquired Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel'el Ware, and Kasparas Jakucionis from the Miami Heat in the Giannis trade, and those players will be involved in the rotation next season. Still, there is one spot on the roster that Milwaukee will need to solve sooner rather than later. 

Now that the Bucks don't have Giannis, they lack talent on the wing. The Bucks' backcourt consists of productive players like Ryan Rollins, Kevin Porter Jr., Tyler Herro, and rookie Brayden Burries. Their frontcourt also has some upside with Kel'el Ware and Myles Turner, but the wings could cause trouble for Milwaukee. 

Kyle Kuzma is slated to start at power forward, and Jaime Jaquez at small forward, but this is an area where opposing teams can attack.

Teams like the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, and New York Knicks outmatch the Bucks in this area of the court, and if Milwaukee doesn't do anything to find a reliable wing in the coming years, they will continue to lose to some of the top teams in the East. 

Offensively, not having a reliable wing can hurt Milwaukee and its ability to score on offense. Kyle Kuzma and Jaquez are capable scorers, but when this team has to face the likes of the Knicks or the 76ers, it could be tough to score on them considering their talent on both sides of the ball on the wing. 

As for their future plans to fix the issue, it gets interesting. Milwaukee currently doesn't own its first-round draft pick for 2027, and it could make some moves to get rights to a pick in the middle of the season. 

To find the franchise's next elite wing, the draft could be their best option to do so. In this year's draft, the Bucks selected forward Nate Ament with the 13th overall pick. At Tennessee, Ament showed he can be a versatile player on the wing, similar to what we see now in the modern NBA. 

Ament showed a mix of skills, including scoring, defending, passing, and rebounding. If he can reach his ceiling as a player, the Bucks will have their next great wing. Until they upgrade at that spot, it will be interesting to see how Taylor Jenkins and the coaching staff will navigate the issue.