The Bucks have 7 unrestricted free agents and they probably would like to bring back at least a couple of them. John Salmons has a early termination option on his contract and I’m positive that he is going to opt out and chase the big bucks. The Bucks probably have a limit they are willing to spend on him and he can likely get more money than they are willing to offer. Michael Redd also has a early termination option but he’s not going anywhere as he will make way more money with the Bucks than he could get from someone else. Point guard Luke Ridnour was outstanding for the Bucks last season but he is one of the best point guards on the open market which means he will likely leave. Jerry Stackhouse and Kurt Thomas might be offered a contract by the Bucks as they both played decent for them last season but only at the teams’ price. Primoz Brezec and Royal Ivey are likely goners for the Bucks.

30-year old shooting guard John Salmons was really outstanding for the Bucks after coming over at the trade deadline in a deal with the Bulls. He played in 30 games (28 starts) for the Bucks last season and he averaged 37.6 minutes, 19.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Salmons played in 81 games (56 starts) overall last season for the Bulls & Bucks in which he averaged 34.9 minutes, 15.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.2 steals per game. The Bucks should be careful not to get in a bidding war for Salmons who is rumored to be a target of the Hawks should they lose Joe Johnson to free agency. Salmons has played in 601 games (247 starts) in his 8 years in the NBA and he has averaged 25.9 minutes, 9.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. Committing to Salmons would be a bit of a risk for the Bucks seeing how he hasn’t been a starting player that long in his career plus he struggled with the Bulls earlier last season.

UPDATE: (6/29/2010) - John Salmons has opted out of his contract becoming a unrestricted free agent.

UPDATE II: (7/3/2010) - The Bucks have re-signed John Salmons to a 5-year, $39 million dollar deal. This was a outstanding move for the Bucks.

The Bucks proved not quite ready for prime time yesterday. They only shot 32.6% from the floor and they were outrebounded 55-34 as they never had a chance in Atlanta yesterday. Brandon Jennings was heaving up bricks again at a alarming rate as he was 6 of 18 shooting as he finished up with 15 points, 2 rebounds and 5 assists. Luc Richard Mbah a Moute had a solid game and the Bucks should have gave him the ball more as he finished up with 13 points and 6 rebounds in only 22 minutes on the floor. Ersan Ilyasova was only 4 of 11 shooting in this game but he still had 13 points and 11 rebounds in 31 minutes. John Salmons had another awful game in this series as he was 5 of 18 shooting from the floor finishing with 11 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists. The Bucks get eliminated 4-3 by the Hawks but they still have a very good season.

There weren’t too many people that predicted the Milwaukee Bucks would make the playoffs this year, but with a breakout season by Andrew Bogut, the stellar play of rookie Brandon Jennings, and the late season acquisition of John Salmon, coach Scott Skiles was able to win 12 more games this season compared to last.  That gave them a regular season record of 46-36, good enough for the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.  The Bucks were one of the biggest surprises in the NBA this season, but after Andrew Bogut went down with a gruesome elbow injury very late in the season everyone was writing off the Bucks once again.  Their first round matchup against the Atlanta Hawks was supposed to be an easy sweep for the Hawks, but Skiles got his Bucks to play inspired basketball and they fought the Hawks hard all series before falling short in game seven.  Although Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Scott Brooks one this year’s NBA Coach of the Year award, Skiles definitely deserved some consideration for the award.  It’s hard to argue against Brooks and the Thunder’s 27 game improvement though, but Skiles did a fantastic job for the Bucks this season.  Skiles is one of the most underrated coaches in the NBA, as he routinely has his team’s overachieving.  The tough, hard-nosed Skiles overachieved as a player too, and has brought that same intensity and work ethic he had as a player to the Bucks.  Milwaukee Bucks fans should be proud of Skiles and the Bucks season this year, and the future is bright with Skiles tutoring the up-and-coming star point guard, Brandon Jennings.

The Bucks only shot 32.9% from the floor and they were outrebounded 51-42 which are the two biggest reasons for the loss last night at home. Carlos Delfino came to play as he filled up the stat sheet with 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 1 blocked shot. Brandon Jennings disappeared again in this game as he shot 4 of 15 from the floor and he finished up with 12 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist. Kurt Thomas played hard last night as he finished up with 11 points, 9 rebounds and 2 assists. The Bucks are tied up at 3 games apiece with the Hawks and they will play a deciding Game #7 tomorrow afternoon in Atlanta.