The Milwaukee Bucks are just 8-9 on the season, a far cry from where they envisioned themselves before the year began. However, when one takes into account that they started 1-6, at one point losing six games in a row, their record becomes rather impressive. Currently on a four-game winning streak, Milwaukee is right in the thick of the Eastern Conference.
As Bucks fans know all too well, the team went through their early-season low-point and subsequent run of success without three-time All-Star Khris Middleton. The franchise’s all-time leader in three-pointers made and attempted had surgery on both of his ankles during the offseason. Unfortunately, it has taken him longer to recover than anyone guessed.
NBA Analyst Suggests the Milwaukee Bucks Trade Khris Middleton for Jerami Grant
Bucks stars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard are each off to strong starts this season. Giannis leads the NBA in scoring with 32.4 points per game while Lillard is averaging 25.2 points and 7.3 assists per game.
While the role players on Milwaukee’s roster took some time to get going, the fact of the matter is that many of them have finally found their niche. This is evident by their four-game winning streak.
However, one weakness that has become apparent is the lack of defensive depth in the frontcourt. Brook Lopez and Giannis are both above-average defenders, but Bobby Portis certainly is not. He had three blocked shots in the Bucks’ latest win against the Charlotte Hornets, but has others been a liability on defense all year long.
With Middleton coming back from injury soon, Greg Schwartz of Bleacher Report believes that Milwaukee should flip him and some younger players for Jerami Grant of the Portland Trailblazers:
“Swapping Khris Middleton and some young talent and/or draft picks for Grant would help enhance the Antetokounmpo-Lillard pairing if the Bucks want to keep their stars together. He’d be a reliable third scoring option and is versatile enough defensively to guard three positions.”
Grant is currently averaging 16.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 0.9 blocks, and 1.1 steals per game for Portland. These are certainly the kind of numbers that could potentially boost Milwaukee’s frontcourt, but there are a few problems with this trade idea.
Will the Milwaukee Bucks Trade Khris Middleton?
In order for a trade to work in any sport, at least two teams need to be interested in getting the deal done. The fact of the matter is that the Bucks probably do not want to trade Middleton. But even if they did, there are not many NBA teams in the market for a player making over $30 million a year that has not played a full season in two years.
In other words, one should not be so sure that the Trailblazers would want Middleton.
But let’s, for the sake of argument, say that they do. Grant’s numbers may appear respectable on paper, but they also indicate a bit of a decline.
Last year, Grant shot 40/45/82 from the floor while averaging 21.0 points per game. Now he is shooting 38/35/83.
Of course, it is still early in the season, but Grant’s production should be monitored by any teams that might be interested in trading for him.
It is safe to say that this is one trade idea that will not happen.
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