With limited assets, the Milwaukee Bucks managed to do a couple of deals at the trade deadline. Given their general manager Jon Horst’s history, we could have seen it coming. Horst is one of the most aggressive and active general managers in the league. With the latest trade with the Clippers, the Bucks got another quality rotation player in Kevin Porter Jr.
Bucks Surround Giannis With Another Rotation Player
The Bucks made two trades this trade deadline, a big one and a smaller one. The big trade was Kyle Kuzma for Khris Middleton. However, the second trade will give them as much value for a cheaper price.
The Bucks turned MarJon Beauchamp, a player who gets four minutes of playing time per game, into a quality rotation player in Kevin Porter Jr. And they saved some money in the process as well. Porter makes $500,000 less this season.
Speaking of fit, Porter averages 9.3 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists this season, on 42.3% shooting from the floor. He is abysmal from three-point range, attempting 2.4 shots at 24.5% efficiency.
Beauchamp, on the other hand, averaged two points in four minutes of action for the Bucks. To put it lightly, they got a rotation player for a bench warmer. Not a bad trade, and they didn’t even have to give up a pick in the process.
How Better are the Bucks?
The Milwaukee Bucks did well at this trade deadline, turning Middleton, who was injury-prone the last few seasons, into Kyle Kuzma, and then added another rotation player in KPJ. The two main players remain Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard.
But now, they have some more quality role players they can plug in along with their two stars. Kuzma has proven to be a good player on a championship roster. He was the third-best player on the Lakers when they won the title in the bubble. Kuzma does have one more year on his contract than Middleton, but at a cheaper price.
Projected Bucks Rotation After Kevin Porter Jr. Trade
It will be interesting to see how Taurean Prince is affected by the moves the Bucks made at the deadline. He earned the starting small forward position. With Kuzma headed to Milwaukee, will that change? What about their starting shooting guard position? Gary Trent Jr and Andre Jackson Jr have started at shooting guard. With Porter Jr. joining the Bucks, the shooting guard spot will be crowded.
The Bucks managed to shore up their center rotation as well, getting Jericho Sims from the Knicks in the Kyle Kuzma trade. They will have challenges with their backup point guard after trading Delon Wright to the Knicks, but Giannis can facilitate the offense when he is out with the reserves and Dame is resting.
The Bucks now have 10 quality rotation players, including Giannis, Dame, Kuzma, Brook Lopez, Bobby Portis Jr, Prince, Trent, AJ Green, and Kevin Porter Jr. Not bad for a team that entered the deadline with almost no assets and in apron territory. They are still not at the same level as the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers. However, when you have Giannis playing at an MVP level, anything is possible.
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