The Buck Stops Here Roundtable #9: Mid-Season Review

Do you think the front office should make a move at the trade deadline?

Coffman: If they can unload a center for anything resembling a reasonable price, I’m all in favor of them pulling the trigger. Of course, that’s much easier said than done, and considering how non-versatile big men seem to be valued right now, it’s pretty unlikely they’re able to entice a buyer. Taking on contracts isn’t a sound strategy either, what with a max extension for Jabari on the horizon. The Bucks don’t have too many attractive assets or roster holes, so I anticipate a quiet trade deadline this year, unless a contender wants a player like Monroe or Beasley as a bench piece.

Schlepp: There’s no way the Bucks can keep paying over $50 million to three centers. They should do all they can to shed one of those contracts at the deadline. Henson and Plumlee haven’t done the organization any favors with their inconsistent play, and Monroe is now playing like the player the Bucks hoped he would be. If you could move Henson for an expiring contract, I think you should. Even if it requires sending a second rounder to sweeten the pot.

Katti: I would expect a relatively quiet deadline from John Hammond and company. The obvious move in the eyes of Bucks fans is to move a center, preferably John Henson or Miles Plumlee. However, it is a difficult task to move players with huge long-term contracts that have not been very effective on the court. If the Bucks were to make any non-center related moves, it would most likely be for a guard or a small forward.

Heffernon: The Bucks did great work with their trades before the season began. Each trade has positively impacted the team. I am unsure if they will be able to make a deal like those again at the deadline. Like Adam, Travis, and Rohan all mentioned moving a center would be the best way to go. It will be a monumental task to move either John Henson or Miles Plumlee but if Hammond can somehow do it he deserves a statue built outside the new arena in his honor.

McGee: I don’t think it’s really a question of should. If the Bucks can make a move that makes them better now and in the future at a fair cost, that will always be something they should do. The question is can they find a deal like that.

I’d say the answer is no. Still, they should gauge interest in all of their three highly-paid centers. I’d imagine it would be minimal, but they need to decide whether they believe they can re-sign Monroe in the summer at this point. If they’re worried about the size of his next deal or his more long-term fit in their plans, moving him now for some kind of return would be the right call, even if it effectively ended their chances of making the playoffs this year.

Treske: (cracks knuckles and puts on trade hat) The time has come. There is what they should do and as everyone mentioned, that would involve trading away one of the their three centers.

Obviously, Plumlee’s deal is already a sunk cost (that was a burning bridge that we weren’t ready to cross) and even with the real threat of him opting out of his deal this summer, Monroe’s value to the team might not be higher than where it is now. That obviously leaves Henson and given his current place in the rotation, the reality of what type of player he is truly seems to be sinking in.

But, of course, there is what they will do and I find it hard to believe that they’ll make a move, even if it may suit their best interest. Of course, I’m very willing to be wrong (it’s almost a source of pride at this point), but expecting or hoping for something to happen at the deadline seems unnecessary.

Wray: It’s no surprise, the Bucks have a very costly problem in the center rotation. However, it’s also no surprise that for one reason or another, Milwaukee is going to have a seriously tough time being able to deal one of them at the deadline. Unfortunately, as I’ve maintained for a while now, unless they can find a really desperate team in need of a big man, or are willing to package a draft pick in exchange for a dead-weight expiring contract, I just can’t see the front office prepared or required to make any changes. As it stands, I don’t think the Bucks have any obvious long-term personnel needs which could realistically be remedied via trade.