Remember way back in April when the Milwaukee Bucks were a playoff team?

It seems like forever ago, what with a new head coach and first round draft pick on board. While the Bucks were relatively inactive on NBA draft night last week, the rest of the Eastern Conference has been considerably shaken up.

The team that finished immediately in front of the Bucks in the playoff standings, Boston, completely tore it down in trades that sent Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Jason Terry to Brooklyn and coach Doc Rivers to the Los Angeles Clippers.

The team that finished immediately behind the Bucks, Philadelphia, also tore it down on draft night – trading recently extended point guard Jrue Holiday to the New Orleans Pelicans for the rights to No. 6 overall pick, Kentucky center Nerlens Noel.

Brooklyn appears to be stronger, but Garnett turned 38 in May, Terry will be 36 in September and Pierce will be 36 in October. They’re teaming up with 32-year-old Joe Johnson under first-year head coach Jason Kidd. That could be a disaster as easily as it could lead the Nets to maybe the second or third seed.

Another playoff team, Atlanta, may lose forward Josh Smith and restricted free agent point guard Jeff Teague.

The New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors have also reportedly shuffled their rosters with a trade involving former No. 1 pick Andrea Bargnani and Marquette University alumnus Steve Novak.

Then there are the Bucks, the eighth seed last season, who were talented enough to be the fourth or fifth seed.

Monta Ellis and J.J. Redick are likely gone as unrestricted free agents, but the team is unlikely to regress to the point they don’t make the playoffs for the second straight year. In fact, the team is one of the few in the league that have the ability to make either a series of free agent moves or a huge splash with one or two big name acquisitions.

I won’t get into all of the salary cap details – the good folks over at BrewHoop.com have already done that for you here – but the key thing to know is the team has to add around $20 million to the payroll to meet the minimum requirements laid out in the collective bargaining agreement.

The first shoe to drop for the Bucks will have to be point guard Brandon Jennings.

If he is unhappy with his restricted free agent offer sheets, he could refuse them all and play for the one-year qualifying offer of just $4.5 million. Or, the Bucks could match a long-term contract, shooting Jennings’ yearly income up around $7 to $12 million per year (using the contracts of Ty Lawson and Jrue Holiday as high-end comparisons).

In a few weeks the Bucks will be able to amnesty Drew Gooden, the only player on the roster signed under the old CBA. Gooden has two years and over $13 million left on his contract, and if general manager John Hammond can convince Bucks owner Sen. Herb Kohl that it’s the right move to just eat that money (it is the right move) the Bucks will have even more cap room to work with.

It would also absolve Hammond of the last of his ill-fated free agent signings since taking over for Larry Harris in 2008.

Hammond has done a good job of shedding bad contracts – even ones he’s agreed to, like John Salmons – and having Kohl do this would give the team maximum cap flexibility.

That said, the 2014 free agent class (restricted and unrestricted) is far stronger than this one – so keeping Gooden on the payroll and just rendering him inactive might make more financial sense going forward, chemistry implications be damned.

I have to think Hammond learned his lesson from his last spending spree following a playoff appearance. It’s not worth it to toss five-year deals and $30 to $40 million at players who really won’t help you advance up the playoff standings and restrict your movement in the future.

The good news is that the Bucks have to spend some money. The big question is whether or not it’s spent the right way.

Bucks recent free-agent signings:

2012
Ersan Ilyasova (5 years, $45 million)
Joel Przybilla (1 year, $1.3)
Marquis Daniels (1 year, $1.2)

2011
Mike Dunleavy (2 years, $7.5)

2010
John Salmons (5 years, $39)
Drew Gooden (5 years, $32)
Keyon Dooling (2 years, $4.2)
Earl Boykins (1 year, $1.3)

2009
Carlos Delfino (3 years, $10.5)*
Hakeem Warrick (1 year, $3)

2008
Tyronn Lue (2 years, $3.9)
Francisco Elson (2 years, $3)
Malik Allen (2 years, $2.6)

* Acquired via sign-and-trade for 2 years, $7 million. Picked up team option for third year.