The Bucks didn’t seem to have any route to improve while Damian Lillard, their aging point guard, recovered from the same exact injury, and while facing the loud ticking clock known as Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Brook Lopez, who joined the Bucks as a free agent in 2018, is returning to Los Angeles, this time joining the Clippers on a two-year, $18 million deal. While he won't physically be here anymore, his name will linger in Milwaukee record books for quite some time.

Lopez was a defensive stalwart and a floor-stretching big. Only Giannis Antetokounmpo remains from the Bucks' core four from the 2021 title.

The Milwaukee Bucks are trading Pat Connaughton and two of their own second-round picks (2031, 2032) to the Charlotte Hornets for Vasilije Micic, sources tell ESPN.