JULY 9: Crowder’s new contract is official, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic.
JULY 1: Free agent forward Jae Crowder will return to the Bucks, according to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and TNT (Twitter link), who reports that Crowder has agreed to a one-year deal with Milwaukee.
Milwaukee shipped out five second-round draft picks to acquire the 32-year-old vet in a three-team exchange with the Suns and Nets in February.
Exact terms of the agreement have yet to be reported. In any deal with an outside free agent, the Bucks will be limited to the veteran’s minimum after having committed big money to free agent starters Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez. However, because Milwaukee possesses Crowder’s Bird rights, the team could sign him to a contract above the standard minimum.
A journeyman 3-and-D role player for several high-level postseason teams, the 6’6″ power forward appeared in 18 contests for the Bucks as a reserve last year, averaging 6.9 PPG on .479/.436/.833 shooting splits, 3.8 RPG, 1.5 APG and 0.7 SPG.
He was cut from Milwaukee’s healthy playoff rotation by former head coach Mike Budenholzer during its five-game first round series loss to the Heat. Budenholzer reinserted the Marquette alum in limited minutes after All-NBA power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo injured his back in Game 1.
The Bucks’ salary obligations have them headed for the league’s new second luxury tax apron, which means they don’t have access to the taxpayer’s mid-level exception, valued at $5MM this year, or their bi-annual exception, worth $4.5MM.
Re-adding Crowder, who served as the starting four on consecutive Finals teams in 2020 (the Heat) and 2021 (the Suns), could be the kind of buy-low move that Milwaukee needs to nail if it hopes to return to playoff glory next spring.
Damn…was hoping he would be 1 of the last 3 guys for the Heat
Do not know what he had to gain from holding out last yr with the Suns. Hs image and his physical fitness took a major toll and thus his pocketbook.
He didn’t have to put up with Monty Williams and he got paid. Win/win
Jae Crowder made a great decision. Going back to the Milwaukee Bucks is very nice. They will be competing for a championship.
See what a full season brings. Cheap signing too. Hopefully it works out
Good value from the Bucks perspective….
And horrible managing from Crowders team…. he’s more like a 7-10 million player…..
We have no idea what he signed for yet.
Big reason he decided to come back was the departure of coach Bud and hiring of Griffin. Fresh start w a full off season and new staff.
Bucks be lucky to make playoffs
It’s Giannis and that old gang
They looked old slow in Miami series
And now that group a year older
There oldest team in league
With very little draft capitol
U crazy man
Giannis was at most 50% games 4-5. Butler was out of his mind hot. Vincent, Strus and Love played lights out.
Cool ur jets
They also lost 2 games in the 4th with 13 and 15 point leads.
At one point, after the Bucks DIDN’T call a TO after Butler tied the game in regulation(when they could have advanced it to half court) Spo said in the Huddle, “what the hell are they doing over there.”
This NBA is SO much about luck. Marjon has looked like the real deal, they have added key defensive players around Giannis, good decision makers.
It’s crazy to think this team is done. Lopez is coming off the best year of his career.
They’ll do to Miami the same thing they did last time they lost a series to them. They’ll sweep them out. Butler has a +/- of -79 that series.
THAT’S what next year looks like if the Bucks are healthy.
“The Bucks’ salary obligations have sent them careening over the league’s new second luxury tax apron.”
LOL…I love how this is stated as fact without having the exact numbers. They certainly aren’t “careening” past the second apron. They were about ~10M below it after Middleton took a 10M cut for this year. Lopez ~23M is a BIG hit when they were hoping to get him back for 3/54. That would have put his first year salary about 8M cheaper(I wonder if a 3 year deal wouldn’t have been smarter. Give him a PO with a 8M buyout that 3rd year so it ends up a 3 year deal for the same 48M, but it’s technically 3/72 he can opt out or re-sign after the 2nd year, gets the same amount of money and the Yr 1 money is ~18M, then ~22 and then yr 3 is the option, but GTD 8M and he gets to opt out, so he gets the same either way, but the Bucks get room to operate.
Or hell, even give Middleton a 4/128 deal so you can lower his 1st year by ~3M.
That could be a savings of another ~10M total putting them ~20M below the 2nd apron before the Crowder signing…which I assumed would be the 5M MLE.
The key is being able to trade a contract like Jrue for Dame(not that exact trade, but to be able to take back more than you send out with the 125% rule…still has to be close to match, but the new rules you cannot take more than you send out).
I’m already “nervous” for the possible looming “lean years” for Bucks Basketball if Giannis doesn’t sign another extension so Him, Middleton, Holiday and Lopez (the year before) could all “walk” for essentially “nothing” which would be Prince Fielder leaving the Crew prior to ‘12 x four with potentially Pat+ Bobby being “lost” as well….. of course it’ll be “interesting” to see what newer ownership is willing to “do” but Horst needs to “earn his keep” and “lucky” for him the Bucks are “due” for another Michael Redd (but “better” than brogdon ha) Marjon “looks” like he’s off to a good “start” but with a new coaching staff a “soph slump” couldn’t entirely be a “surprise” and I hope he’s given more minutes to develop on this champ caliber team because that’d “payoff” in the future, also obviously it’d help if Green takes a step “forward” and one or more of these second rounders/un drafted guys “turn out”
Why is every other word in quotation marks? Do you know English?
Whats with a quote in every sentence?
Do you know what quotes are used for? Hard to read. My spellcheck screws stuff up sometimes
They don’t need to use the MLE to re-sign Crowder, they have his Bird rights.
Milwaukee NBA team signs Crowder for……
BUCKS !!