Some clubs find the word 'rebuild' too small for their task, while others find it too big. Olimpia Milano belongs to the latter group: eight new players, a 40-year-old coach in his first full season at the helm, and the mission to return a team that has missed the playoffs for two consecutive seasons back to postseason contention.
The Starting Point
The 2025-26 season ended with Milan finishing 14th out of 20, with 17 wins and 21 losses. Neither play-in nor realistic options to be in it, in a season also hampered by injuries: Vlatko Cancar, signed as a marquee reinforcement, was able to play just two games before suffering a knee injury.
It's the second consecutive year for the club stuck in that middle ground that serves no purpose: too good to rebuild from scratch, too short to compete for anything. The response has been to change almost everything.
Who's Leaving
The most significant departure is Josh Nebo, who moves to Barcelona and leaves a significant void in the paint. Also departing are Zach LeDay and Vlatko Cancar, the latter to San Pablo Burgos, where he recently suffered another injury that will sideline him for several months. And Bryant Dunston, a veteran leader in the locker room, became a free agent and has been signing monthly deals with Olympiacos.
Who's Arriving
Eight signings that paint a pretty clear picture of the club's vision: perimeter depth, shooting, and proven role players rather than big names.
At point guard, RJ Cole and Darius Thompson arrive, the latter from Valencia Basket, where he was an important piece on the team that reached the Final Four last season. He's probably Milan's most solid signing of the summer.
On the wing, three different profiles: Garrison Mathews, a shooting guard with NBA experience and a three-point specialist; Devon Hall, who returns to a club where he already played and has described as his home; and Jason Burnell, named the best sixth man in the Italian league.
In the frontcourt, Moses Wright arrives from Zalgiris after an explosive season, Alec Peters brings outside shooting from Panathinaikos, and Nicola Akele signs a multi-year deal to strengthen the rotation of tall wings.
Who's Staying
The continuity block is distinctly Italian. Stefano Tonut, Diego Flaccadori, Pippo Ricci, and Ousmane Diop remain, the latter having been re-signed, along with Marko Guduric, who just competed in the FIBA window with Serbia, and Devin Booker in the paint.
And Leandro Bolmaro continues, a name that will ring a bell for Spanish fans: he was prominent with Argentina in the World Cup qualifying window in August, scoring 19 points against Puerto Rico while also serving as the primary defender.
The Keys
A coach without European experience. Peppe Poeta is 40 years old, was an assistant at Olimpia itself and with the Italian national team, and coached just one season at Brescia before taking over the first team midway through last season. His ability is not in question; his experience leading a EuroLeague project is. This is his first full season.
The void left by Nebo. Losing the starting center and replacing him with Moses Wright and Alec Peters is betting on a different style of basketball: more mobility and more shooting, less physical presence. It will work or it won't, but it's a change of model, not a replacement.
Too many perimeter players. With Cole, Thompson, Mathews, Hall, Tonut, Guduric, Flaccadori, and Bolmaro, Poeta has eight players for three positions. Distributing minutes without losing anyone along the way will be one of his most delicate tasks.
Domestic pressure. Olimpia also competes in the Italian league, where failure is not tolerated the same way. A poor start in Europe with parallel demands in the LBA is the combination that has cost the most coaches at this club.
The Forecast
Milan has built a more balanced and deeper roster than last season, but without a star who can win games on his own. That profile usually amounts to fighting for the play-in and little more in a competition where there are six or seven clearly superior projects at the top.
The realistic objective is to return to the postseason. And the caveat is that, with eight signings and a rookie coach, the margin for error at the start is narrow.
Complete Roster
Point Guards and Wings: RJ Cole (1.85m), Darius Thompson (1.93m), Diego Flaccadori (1.93m), Stefano Tonut (1.94m), Garrison Mathews (1.96m), Devon Hall (1.96m), Marko Guduric (1.96m), Leandro Bolmaro (2.00m)
Small Forwards: Jason Burnell (2.01m), Pippo Ricci (2.01m), Nicola Akele (2.03m), Ousmane Diop (2.04m)
Power Forwards and Centers: Devin Booker (2.05m), Alec Peters (2.06m), Moses Wright (2.07m)