According to NBA insiders Tim Bontemps and Brian Windhorst of ESPN, the Milwaukee Bucks are open to trading Khris Middleton, Bobby Portis and Pat Connaughton.
“The Bucks have been active this trade season, sources said, with Khris Middleton, Bobby Portis and Pat Connaughton all expected to be available in potential moves to bring back an impact player,” Bontemps and Windhorst wrote in their NBA column. “Like Phoenix did, the Bucks have only their 2031 first-round pick to trade, but they also need to shed around $6.5 million in a deal to get below the second apron to be able to combine players in a trade.
“As the Bucks have shown going back to when they made the Damian Lillard trade last year, they are determined to maximize every bit of Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s title window. And, with Antetokounmpo playing at an MVP level again this season, Milwaukee is hoping it can make upgrades over the next couple of weeks to challenge the Cavaliers, Celtics and Knicks atop the conference — against whom the Bucks are 0-8 this season.”
The Bucks are 25-17 on the season. They are in fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings.
Middleton, Portis and Connaughton helped the Bucks win the 2021 title against the Phoenix Suns.
Since then, Milwaukee has lost in the second round of the playoffs once and the first round twice.
Middleton is close friends with Antetokounmpo, so how a potential trade would make Giannis feel is unknown.
The Bucks are 12th in the NBA in points per game, ninth in points per game allowed, 11th in offensive rating, eighth in defensive rating and eighth in net rating under head coach Doc Rivers.
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