Milwaukee Bucks: Grades for Kyle Korver’s one-year, veteran minimum deal
By Adam McGee
Value
In spite of his age, if Korver wanted to land a more lucrative deal, his outstanding shooting would likely have afforded him the opportunity to do so. Instead, Korver has shown a desire to join up with winning teams in recent years as he looks to cap off a storied career with a championship ring.
With that consideration as a starting base, getting Korver on a veteran minimum deal is automatically a bargain. The value of the deal only looks even better when the competition the Bucks faced for his signature is accounted for.
When Korver first hit the open market, the Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers were mentioned as the most likely destinations for him along with the Bucks, and reports suggest the Sixers remained in contention up until he made his final decision.
Aside from the obvious appeal of those two franchises as potential contenders, there were also personal reasons why the 38-year-old could have opted for either of those teams. Korver’s California roots and existing relationship with former Cavaliers teammate LeBron James certainly made the Lakers seem like a viable option, while having played alongside 76ers GM Elton Brand in Atlanta and having spent the first five seasons of his career in Philadelphia, the Sixers also seemed like a logical landing spot.
In the end, Milwaukee won out (for reasons that I’ll get into in more detail shortly) and walked away with one of the standout, value signings of free agency as a result.
The Bucks did brilliantly to add a career 38 percent three-point shooter on a minimum deal when Wesley Matthews agreed to his homecoming at the start of free agency, but landing a career 43 percent threat such as Korver is even more remarkable.
In a vacuum, that would represent tremendous value, but considering Korver’s vast experience, value in the locker room, and pre-existing comfort in Mike Budenholzer’s system, the deal only becomes even more impressive.