Seven players have expired contracts from last season and 2 have Early Termination Options (ETO). Of those 2, Michael Redd will not opt-out of his $18.3M he is scheduled to receive for next season. John Salmons has the other ETO and would receive $5.8M if he were to keep his current contract. I think he will terminate his contract and look for more money on the open market since this is the year with lots of available cash. Salmons scored 20 points per game on 47% shooting for the Bucks after being acquired from the Bulls at the trade deadline. Those numbers warrant a bigger contract than the mid-level exception, $5.8M.
Of the unrestricted free agents, Luke Ridnour would be the hardest for the Bucks to replace. He was an above average back-up that earned $6.5M. I could even argue that he was better than Brandon Jennings last season but that is for another post. The list of replaceable expiring contracts includes Kurt Thomas, Primoz Brezec, Royal Ivey, and Jerry Stackhouse. Stackhouse played a solid role last year but it's hard to pencil in a role player in his mid-late 30s into a franchise's future plans.Which brings us to contracts still on the books next season. Redd's $18.3M could be a valuable trade chip for next season, as well as Dan Gadzuric's $7.3M. They retain Bogut, a top 5 center in the league, for the next 4 years. Rounding out the rest of the roster is a nucleus of mildly paid players that are solid building blocks for the future, with the exception of Charlie Bell, who is limited in his effectiveness. Mbah a Moute, Jennings, Eliyasova, and Delfino all bring something to the table of value.
With Salmons off the books, the Bucks would have under $10M to play with this off-season. That's enough to bring back Ridnour, sign another role player, and get a player or two with exception money. The problem is, who wants to play in Milwaukee if they aren't being over-paid or aren't a few hustle plays away from the D-League? They over-paid for Bell. Redd re-signed because they could offer more money and more shots. Eliyasova does some nice things but he is hardly what I would call a free agent splash. Desmond Mason was a bigger free agent signing in the Bucks recent history! Everyone else on the roster has been assembled via draft or trade.
The best option for Milwaukee is to try and turn Redd and Gadzuric into something of substance. It's only a matter of time before teams start stock piling available cash to try to lure Carmelo or Chris Paul away in the summer of 2011. If they could get value like Houston did for McGrady, it's a step towards filling the roster with enough talent to contend. They currently hold the 15th pick in the upcoming draft. They should target some athletic wings to try to improve their transition offense. They are a defensive team, which hinders their tempo, but scoring becomes a lot simpler when a team can get out in the open court and get some easier buckets.
Who makes sense in free agency: In reality, anyone who is willing to come to Milwaukee and not leave them with a horrible contract 2 years down the road.
Who makes sense in the draft: Xavier Henry (Kansas), Avery Bradley (Texas), Paul George (Fresno St), or Hassan Whiteside (Marshall). Whiteside could take Thomas' minutes. Henry, Bradley and George would fill the role of a much needed athlete.
