More on Eric Bledsoe to Bucks
Eric Nehm: And it is now officially official.
Outside of Antetokounmpo, Eric Bledsoe will likely be playing alongside Malcolm Brogdon. Already showing strides in year two, the Bucks current starting point guard is curious to see how the two mesh in the backcourt when he arrives. “You know at this point, you can’t be sure,” Brogdon told Basketball Insiders Tuesday of what the acquisition does for the team. “I think it’ll be a positive. Losing Moose [Monroe] is definitely a negative for us. He brought so much to the table for us, especially coming off the bench. He’s a starter that came off the bench. But you know, having another guard that can really create his own shot, get downhill and make plays—I think that will definitely help us.”
Malcolm Brogdon told Basketball Insiders that we could be watching the Bucks play with more guard-heavy sets in small ball moving forward. When asked if that fits his skill set, he immediately nodded his head in approval. “We’re a defensive-minded team, but we want to be fast,” Brogdon told Basketball Insiders. “We want to play in the open court and we want to be very versatile and be able to defend multiple positions on defense. Having more guards and sort of mid-sized guys is gonna help us.”
Adrian Wojnarowski: Sources: First-round pick protection: 2018: Suns get Bucks pick between 11-to-16. 2019: 4-to-16. 2020: 8 to 30. 2021: Unprotected.
Bobby Marks: The Bucks will create a $3.38M Trade Exception and fall $4.4M below the luxury tax after shipping out Greg Monroe in exchange for Eric Bledsoe. The point guard has a $14.5M cap hit this year and $15M next season. The Bucks now have $106M in contracts next season, roughly $16M below the luxury tax. Bringing back restricted free agent Jabari Parker will likely push Milwaukee into the tax. Milwaukee also has a $5M Trade Exception that will expire in February.
The Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks have reached an agreement on a trade that will send point guard Eric Bledsoe to Milwaukee in exchange for center Greg Monroe and a future first-round draft pick, a person with direct knowledge of the agreement confirmed to USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke under the condition of anonymity because the trade had not yet been made official. Bledsoe, 27, hasn't played since his infamous "I don't want be here" tweet, which he sent shortly before the news broke that Suns head coach Earl Watson had been fired just three games into the season. Suns general Manager Ryan McDonough said afterwards that Bledsoe "won't be" with the team going forward.
Matt Velazquez: League sources say the picks in the not-yet-finalized Bucks-Suns deal are a "uniquely" protected 2018 first & top 47 protected 2018 second.
Adrian Wojnarowski: Suns finalizing deal to send Eric Bledsoe to Bucks, league sources tell @ZachLowe_NBA and me.
Adrian Wojnarowski: Phoenix finalizing deal to send Eric Bledsoe to Milwaukee for Greg Monroe and a first-round draft pick, sources tell @Zach Lowe and me.
The deal could also include a second-round pick, league sources tell ESPN.
Jonathan Wasserman: Suns also get Miami's 1st-round pick if it lands outside top 7. Assuming pick in Bledsoe deal is 2018, Phoenix could have three 1st-rounders twitter.com/wojespn/status…
Bobby Marks: The Bucks will gain luxury tax flexibility this season with the Eric Bledsoe $14.5M cap hit. Milwaukee was $1M below the tax before the trade and are now $4.3M. Next year is where things get complicated for Milwaukee. The Bledsoe 2018–19 $15M salary has the Bucks with $116M in guaranteed salaries, $6M below the tax. The restricted free agency of Jabari Parker will push the Bucks into the tax. The Bucks will also gain a $3.38M trade exception.
Alex Kennedy: This could be a steal for the Bucks. Remember, last year Eric Bledose averaged 21.1 points, 6.3 assists, 4.8 boards, 1.4 steals in 66 games.
