Major early-November NBA trades are rare, but the Suns and Bucks are on the verge of completing one, having agreed in principle to a trade that will send Eric Bledsoe to Milwaukee. Greg Monroe is heading to Phoenix as part of that deal, along with the Bucks’ 2018 first-round pick and 2018 second-round pick.
Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times (Twitter link) expressed some surprised that Tyson Chandler wasn’t involved in the trade, since he’s a good friend of Jason Kidd, who has wanted Chandler on his roster in the past. However, Chandler is earning $13MM and is under contract next year as well, so the Bucks would have had to add another substantial salary to the deal to make that happen.
Meanwhile, Chris Haynes of ESPN observes (via Twitter) that the Suns finalized the agreement just when Bledsoe was about to return to the club’s facility to work out, which was either a fortuitous coincidence or a sign that the team really had no interest in having him around.
Here’s more on the Bledsoe trade:
- Monroe and his $17MM+ contract appear to be functioning primarily as salary filler to complete this deal, but the Suns have yet to decide whether to keep, trade, or release him, tweets John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7. If Phoenix buys out Monroe, the big man would be an “obvious candidate” to sign with the Celtics or Thunder, says Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post (Twitter link).
- After trading Monroe, the Bucks look like a match made in heaven for Jahlil Okafor, argues Bryan Kalbrosky of HoopsHype.
- While Bledsoe didn’t have a strong preference for where he ended up, Milwaukee was at the top of his wish list, according to Gambadoro, who says the point guard is looking forward to playing with Giannis Antetokounmpo (Twitter links).
- Because today’s trade is a one-for-one swap in terms of players, the Suns will still have to open up a roster spot within the next month in order to convert Mike James‘ two-way contract to a standard NBA deal, notes Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link).
- The acquisition of Bledsoe doesn’t come without a good deal of risk for the Bucks, given the point guard’s injury history, writes Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
Monroe and Jahlil have incredibly similar playstyles. I agree with Bryan here. Maybe DJ Wilson for Okafor and a couple 2nd rounders or just Vaughn for Jahlil.
Agree win win for bucks and sixers
Good Move Suns
It’s a good move for both sides. The Suns get value for a guy who wanted out with a 1st and a 2nd and the Bucks finally get rid of Monroe who didn’t pan out to be the star they paid him to be. Everyone’s happy
The Suns traded a problem for a late first round pick. The Bucks traded a problem for Eric Bledsoe. Winner Bucks.
Well, we can’t really judge the trade completely until the Sins make a decision on Monroe…
Or at least until we see how the season plays out. Bledsoe could put the Bucks near the top of the East for a long playoff run, or he could get injured in two weeks…
Personally, I believe both teams came out with what they really wanted to accomplish. Although, clearly, this trade benefits the Bucks the most, considering Bledsoe can stay healthy.
If Bledsoe stays healthy, which is far from a sure thing, especially after his recent layoff, but if he’s healthy adding him to this young nucleus of the Bucks is a huge gain for their team. Having Bledsoe and Giannis running the PnR could be lethal, and opposing team’s defenses could have some major fits trying to guard those two and Middleton as well…
The Bucks are athletic, they are long, and they can play some solid defense. I think Bledsoe definitely helps them, but they might still be maybe another shooter away from being real contenders for a title run…I don’t think this will be the last trade they make, personally.