The pain that everyone and one city have to face! Would the letter "Gap" for a year like Curry in 20 years?

Translator's note: This article was originally published from The Athletic, and the author is Eric Nehm. The data in the article are as of the original article as of May 12, local time. The views in the article have nothing to do with the translator and the platform.

The future of the team changed dramatically when Damian Lillard suddenly fell on the floor of the Fitzer Forum Arena in Game 4 of the first round series between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Indiana Pacers.

The management urgently needs to re-evaluate and adjust all existing plans or ideas for the 2025-26 season. With Lillard diagnosed with a torn left Achilles tendon, the Bucks have to accept the reality that the star guard will miss most of next season’s games, a blow that will severely undermine their competitiveness in the NBA championship.

This is the first time since 2018 that the Bucks have difficulty forming a team with the strength to compete for the championship. As the cornerstone of the team, Giannis Antetokounmpo has long been accustomed to participating in the highest level of competition as an MVP candidate.

Faced with this reality, how should the Bucks describe their path to Antetokounmpo? A potential direction may be to go through a "gap year" (temporarily withdraw from the championship competition) in order to better prepare for future championship competitions while accepting the reality that next season may not be able to hit the third championship trophy in team history.

Let's see how the Bucks get this idea to be embraced by one of the world's best basketball players.

There is no need to whitewash this: Lillard's tear on his left Achilles tendon seriously damages any possibility of the team building a championship roster next season. This is reality. It's a cruel reality - even if there is an unprecedented medical miracle, the veteran point guard will miss most of the games next season. But that doesn't mean the whole season will be worthless.

Except for Tim Duncan, all the great "one person, one city" players have experienced "interval years". Kobe Bryant led the league scoring table twice in the "interval year" between winning the fourth and fifth championships for the Los Angeles Lakers. Stephen Curry, 32, led the league in scoring and finished third in the Most Valuable Player selection when he led the Golden State Warriors to wait for Klay Thompson to recover from injury in the 2020-21 season.

While winning the NBA championship may not be realistic, this team can put Antetokounmpo in the position to win his third NBA Most Valuable Player.

After Lillard was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis, Bucks coach Doug Rivers pushed Antetokounmpo into point guard position and rebuilt the entire offensive system around him. Antetokounmpo's data during this period is jaw-dropping: in the six games that Antetokounmpo participated during the eight-game winning streak at the end of the season, he averaged 31.8 points, 12.0 rebounds and 11.8 assists per game.

Although the 20 assists that hit a career high against the Philadelphia 76ers improved the average, if Lillard continues to miss next season, the trend of Antetokounmpo's centralized ball rights will make it possible for him to continue to explode. According to Cleaning the Glass, Antetokounmpo's usage rate was only 36.8% during that season. In the 2022-23 season, his usage rate was 39.1%. Therefore, there is still room for improvement to further adopt the tactical system centered on Antetokounmpo.

In the absence of Lillard and limited assets, this may be the only viable style of play on the offensive end next season and could bring amazing numbers to Antetokounmpo. With increased usage and more organizational offensive responsibilities, Antetokounmpo may lead the league scoring for the first time in his career, or he may achieve a feat of a triple-double per game. If he does any of that while leading the Bucks into the playoffs – remember that the Eastern Conference will be able to lock in the No. 6 seed with just 44 wins this season – that could give him a third NBA MVP.

Antesco wants to compete at the highest level and go further in the playoffs, but if the Bucks can’t do that next season, winning the MVP will make him the 10th player in NBA history to win the award three times, which would be a convincing consolation prize.

Same as Antetokounmpo, Lillard's salary of $54.1 million next season will account for 35% of the $154.6 million salary cap, which greatly limits the team's operating space. While cap space cannot be created, the Bucks still hold multiple special provisions, which provide possibilities for young players who have shown their potential at the end of last season.

Despite a fatal mistake in the critical moment of overtime in the first round of the playoffs, Gary Trent performed very well in the Bucks' playoffs, especially when getting more opportunities to partner with Antetokounmpo. Trent will seek a pay raise in the offseason, but the team can use a full $14.1 million special case for middle class to keep him.

In addition to Trent, the Bucks also have AJ Green, whose contract is non-guaranteed next season and they can bring him back to the team next season. At the point guard position, the Bucks had two young players making their mark in the last few months of the regular season when Lillard was long out. In the playoffs, the Bucks rely on Kevin Porter Jr. to help organize offense and score. He struggled in his first few games because that was his first playoff game in the NBA. But as the series progressed, he became more adaptable. Ryan Rollins wasn't as aggressive and confident on the offense, and didn't have the same success as Porter in his first playoff series, but he didn't seem to be afraid of that moment either.

Potter has the player option to be a full free agent, but Rollins is a restricted free agent. Both players have shining points last season, and the Bucks will have the ability to spend some money to retain both of them and have plenty of opportunities for the two players to consolidate their position as NBA rotation next season.

If these four players are successfully retained, the Bucks will form a lineup structure with reasonable age gradients (25-26 years old) and complementary functions:

Potter, a 25-year-old organizational offensive threater, can perform well in the cooperation with Antetokounmpo.

Rollins, a 23-year-old defensive-oriented point guard, has a three-point shooting percentage of 40%.

Trent, a 26-year-old sharpshooter, has the attributes of a big heart at a critical moment in the playoffs.

AJ Green, a deadly shooter with 42% three-point shooting percentage, performed well in the cooperation with Antetokounmpo and will turn 26 this fall.

The four players have proved their worth over the past seasons, but given their respective age and experience levels, it is possible that they will perform better next season and grow into better players through more games and training. Give these young players enough playing time next season, which will not only promote their growth, but also reserve high-quality assets for future transactions. Other players in the

lineup are mainly older players, especially if the team finds a way to bring Portis and Lopez back. But the Bucks have other options, making the team younger and more athletic. Jericho Himms, 26, performed well after the trade deadline, and the Bucks have the option to re-sign him. With Portis suspended for 25 games, his ability to influence the game shows that if the Bucks want to pursue this type of player in the free agent market, they can make the big man prototype that is athletic, good at rushing the basket and adapted to a lot of switches.

Even if the Bucks choose to keep these old faces that will become free agents, they will still have several open roster spots to sign some young players who have not yet proven themselves with a basic salary contract to create more lineup depth.

With Lillard's absence, the Bucks will be at a disadvantage in talent compared to the best teams in the NBA, but that doesn't mean they will be at a disadvantage in the entire league. It takes great effort from Antetokounmpo, but his dominance can keep the Bucks at least about 50% winning rate next season. This could bring some personal honor to Antetokounmpo, while in the relatively moderately competitive East, which might be enough to keep the Bucks in the top six and secure a playoff spot.

In the playoffs, anything can happen. If Lillard can return by the end of next season, maybe the Bucks can take advantage of the opportunity. However, in the “interval year” setting, this part isn’t that important, as spending this season will put the Bucks in a better position to build a championship team after next year.

More importantly, a smooth transition to the summer of 2026 will bring multiple benefits: the salary cap is expected to grow 10% to $170 million, and the luxury tax line will exceed $205 million. Lillard ($58.5 million player option) and Kuzma ($20.4 million) will be in the final year of the contract, and their expiration contracts will increase the flexibility of the deal.

In addition, the Bucks will have first-round picks for the 2026 NBA Draft, as well as first-round picks for 2031, 32 and 33 years, meaning they can also trade two of the three draft picks. This will bring the Bucks closer to having enough first-round picks to make large-scale trades to gain more talent. If they can tap some talent internally, they will have good chips to strengthen the championship again. Lillard's injury was something the Bucks had never expected, so they would have to consider a variety of responses for the upcoming offseason. Although it is necessary to be prepared to convince Antetokounmpo to accept the transition period, the interval year strategy essentially earns the team a valuable time window to reorganize assets, cultivate rookies, and lay out the future. Through strategic dormant, Milwaukee is expected to accumulate sufficient capital to win the championship in the 2026-27 season.