Milwaukee Bucks offseason questions

The Milwaukee Bucks’ season came to an end following their 4-2 series loss against the Toronto Raptors this past weekend. As a result, the Raptors advanced to the NBA Finals, while the Bucks can only ponder about what could have been.

Although dropping four straight games after taking a 2-0 lead is disappointing, the Bucks must look ahead to the offseason. So, without further delay, here are the Milwaukee Bucks’ biggest offseason questions.

3. Will Bucks offer max extension to Khris Middleton? Middleton posted averages of 18.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists per contest, while shooting 37.8 percent from beyond the arc. And being that he was the second-best player on the Bucks’ roster, he is going to be seeking near-max money. Even though he didn’t play spectacularly well against the Raptors (13.7 points on 41.4 percent shooting), he should be a priority for the Bucks during the offseason.  

2. Other free agent decisions. The Bucks will also have to make decisions on Brook Lopez, Nikola Mirotic and Malcolm Brogdon as well. Because of his ability to space the floor, Lopez is certainly an important piece for the Bucks. And Brogdon, while he’s not a superstar, he did play well once he returned from a foot injury. In addition to that, Brogdon became only the eighth player in NBA history to compile a 50-40-90 season. Mirotic was virtually unplayable in the conference finals, thus paving the way for his departure. In addition to that, George Hill has a non-guaranteed $18 million option that the Bucks have to decide if they want to pick up. In other words, it will be interesting to see how this offseason question will pan out for the Bucks.

1. Can Giannis Antetokounmpo elevate his game? By all accounts, Antetokounmpo had a great season. He set career highs in scoring (27.7 points per game); rebounds (12.5) and assists (5.9). Along with that, he also shot a career best 57.8 percent from the field during the regular season. What happened in the conference finals was unfortunate for the Bucks and their fans. Once the Raptors founds a way to keep him out of the paint, the complexion of the series changed. After suffering such a devastating loss, the question becomes can Antetokounmpo take his game to the next level? Because he has improved in several categories each year he’s been in the league, the answer to that question should be a yes, thus answering one of biggest Milwaukee Bucks’ offseason questions.