Milwaukee Bucks Rumors: Acquire Jrue Holiday for Eric Bledsoe, George Hill, draft picks
According to multiple reports, the Milwaukee Bucks have acquired Jrue Holiday from the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for Eric Bledsoe, George Hill and draft picks.
The Milwaukee Bucks reportedly have their new point guard for the present and future.
First reported by The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the Bucks have acquired Jrue Holiday from the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for Eric Bledsoe, George Hill and future draft picks.
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ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski followed up by reporting that the Bucks are sending three future first rounders as well as a couple of pick swaps that rivals the kind of deal the Pelicans landed from the Los Angeles Lakers in the Anthony Davis deal.
The Athletic’s David Aldridge was the first to report that the 24th overall pick the Bucks acquired from the Indiana Pacers last summer is among the many picks included in the deal.
Clearly, that’s a lot of draft capital the Bucks have given up and tied to the deal, all while the speculation surrounding Giannis Antetokounmpo is magnified on what he chooses to do with his supermax extension offer.
Along with that, Holiday holds a $26.2 million player option for the 2021-22 season and there has been plenty of speculation in him potentially declining that to re-enter free agency and get one more last big contract.
In Jrue Holiday, the Milwaukee Bucks have made their all-in move to win an NBA title and appease Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Even with the high amount of risk that comes with signing off on a deal like this, the Bucks were in no position to make any move that didn’t land them a meaningful upgrade on their current foundation. Not when they have failed to reach the NBA Finals in each of the last two seasons.
In Holiday, the Bucks land the backcourt upgrade they have desperately needed, especially as Eric Bledsoe has consistently floundered in the playoffs in each of the last three years. Holiday’s two-way abilities give the Bucks an All-Defensive caliber player and they won’t lose any defensive steel after being the league’s best defensive teams under Mike Budenholzer’s reign.
On top of that, Holiday’s offensive production is equally as strong. The 30-year-old is coming off year in which he averaged 19.1 points on .455/.353/.709 shooting splits, along with 6.7 rebounds and 4.8 assists over his 61 appearances on the year.
While Holiday is not the high-level 3-point shooter the Bucks need to fully maximize his fit around Antetokounmpo and All-Star Khris Middleton, the UCLA product’s well-rounded abilities more than make up for that.
Hanging over all of this is the urgency with which the organization had to operate under with Antetokounmpo’s future the talk around the league. If the move to acquire Holiday, even with questions hanging over his free agency, sways Antetokounmpo to sign his supermax extension, it’s fair to say this all was worth it. Even if the pressure only builds further moving forward.
Next. Robin Lopez declines player option for next season. dark
All of it comes down to the Bucks being able to put together the best roster possible in order to compete for an NBA title. With Antetokounmpo, Holiday and Middleton, the Bucks may just have done exactly that. We’ll have more reactions to his blockbuster deal in the coming days.