The Milwaukee Bucks held their annual media day on Monday at the Froedtert & Medical College of Wisconsin Sports Science Center, the team’s Downtown training and practice facility, with many new faces in attendance as well as a glaring absence.
For the first time in several years, the focus of the event wasn’t superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo and the high hopes of chasing another NBA title. The Bucks traded Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat in an off-season deal that ended his spectacular 13-year run in Milwaukee, the high point of which was winning the 2020-21 NBA championship, the franchise’s first title in 50 years.
Antetokounmpo’s name came up multiple times but those that addressed the media, from co-owner Wes Edens, general manager Jon Horst and new head coach Taylor Jenkins, to several players, including homegrown newcomer Tyler Herro, stressed the excitement of a fresh start for a franchise that has floundered in recent seasons trying to reach the pinnacle again with Antetokounmpo-led teams.
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“Obviously, it was a huge blessing to have Giannis in the organization,” Edens said. “We have a championship banner here. We had massive amounts of success. Now, we have the next crop of these young folks here that have every right to believe that they can be the next group that builds towards that. We don’t think of this as a rebuilding team. We think of this as a building team. There’s a big difference and I think that we’re going to have a lot of success this year.”
Edens plans to be around as the Bucks transition begins, saying he has no immediate plans to sell his ownership stake in the team.
“Circumstances change, you never know, but no, no plans to,” said Edens.
Last season, the Bucks limped to a 32-50 record, with Antetokounmpo limited to just 36 games, including missing the season’s final 15 games, due to injuries, resulting in Milwaukee missing the playoffs for the first time in a decade. In the aftermath, the Bucks traded Antetokounmpo, along with fan favorite Bobby Portis, the last two holdovers from the Bucks championship team, to Miami for a haul of players and draft picks, among them All-Star Herro, a Greenfield native and former Whitnall High School star, and a trio of solid young players – Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel’el Ware and Kasparas Jakucionis.
“It was not a hard decision in the end,” Edens said of the trade. “Nobody feels sorry for you in professional sports, everyone deals with injuries and I feel like we’ve had more than our share of bad luck; maybe we’re now planning to have more than our share of good luck.”
Shortly before the Bucks began their media day, a similar situation was playing out in Miami, with Antetokounmpo addressing Miami reporters while dressed in a Heat uniform, something that many Bucks fans are certainly still struggling to comprehend.
Overseeing the Bucks’ highly revamped lineup is Jenkins, hired in April to replace Doc Rivers. Jenkins, who previously coached the Memphis Grizzlies, is the franchise’s third coach since the 2023 firing of Mike Budenholzer, who led the Bucks to the title.
“We are going to ask these guys to work at an extremely high level, day in and day out,” Jenkins said. “Whether it’s on-court work, in the weight room, or film work, we’re going to hold everyone accountable, not just our players. I mean everyone in this organization, and I’ve got to lead by example. I’m excited about the culture we’re going to build.”
Horst backed his new coach.
“We’re here today to talk about building a culture and identity of accountability, competitiveness and getting better together each and every day,” Horst said. “We’ve got a group of guys that we think embody that and that are going to live that. Taylor’s going to demand that. We’re going to demand that each and every day and quite frankly, if they don’t live by it, we’ll figure out the accountable actions and we’ll move forward. It’s an exciting opportunity to continue to build, and we’re excited about this group.”
Center Myles Turner, who is entering his 12th NBA season and second with the Bucks, will be looked upon as the team’s leader.
“From everything I’ve seen so far, I think we’re in a good place,” Turner said of the post-Antetokounmpo roster, adding that the team is anxious to return to the court. “It’s been a long off-season for everybody in this organization.”
Turner had a busy and what he described as a “successful” off-season, which included getting engaged, hosting multiple basketball camps and being elected as a vice president on the National Basketball Players Association Executive Committee, which left him little time to enjoy his favorite hobby, building Legos.
“I didn’t have a lot of time in the off-season, but I had time for a few of those,” Turner said.
Herro, the 26-year-old sharp-shooter, who is Whitnall High School’s all-time leading scorer with 2,036 points, returns home. He missed 49 games last season due to injury but is expected to be a main scoring option for the Bucks this season, having averaged more than 20 points per game in five of his seven NBA seasons.
“It’s a beautiful city, I love being here,” said Herro. “I’m just excited to help lead this new era of Bucks basketball.”
The team will take the court this season on a path of “trying to get back to the mountaintop of winning a championship,” according to Herro.
The Bucks begin training camp in Milwaukee on Tuesday with a 21-player roster. The team begins its preseason schedule on Oct. 5, hosting the Minnesota Timberwolves at Fiserv Forum. With the regular season tip off on Oct. 21 against the Wizards in Washington, with its home opener on Oct. 23 against the Chicago Bulls.
