Per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Pat Connaughton is reportedly returning to the Milwaukee Bucks on a three-year deal worth $16 million.
After spending two seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks, many wondered where Pat Connaughton would stand in the team’s plans moving forward.
Well, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Connaughton will return to the Bucks on a three-year deal slated at $16 million. This comes after there was some initial confusion about the length and earnings in the deal, but it would appear that this is final.
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Still, that $16 million is a substantial raise in pay compared to what Milwaukee owed Connaughton on his first deal with the team, which was a two-year contract worth $3.4 million.
Connaughton has been a key rotational player for head coach Mike Budenholzer since joining the Bucks in the summer of 2018, and the organization clearly feels strongly about his contributions. In that span, the high-flying guard averaged 6.1 points on .461/.331/.750 shooting splits, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game. Pat’s stats might not show his value, but he proved to be an energetic spark off Milwaukee’s bench these past two seasons, having constantly contributed on both ends of the floor.
This news that Connaughton will be returning to the Bucks should not come as much of a surprise, although the money given to him on the deal certainly is eye-opening. Nevertheless, Pat carved out a serviceable role in Milwaukee these past two seasons and believed that he found himself a place he wanted to stay long term. As he told SB Nation’s Michael Pina in an interview earlier this year:
"“I want to continue to be part of the Milwaukee Bucks as a championship contender, and I want to continue to help my team eventually win a championship, two, three, four, whatever it is. What my contract looks like while I’m doing that? If it was more money and more guaranteed years, absolutely, I’d love that. But as long as I’m here, as long as I’m playing, as long as I’m doing my job to continue to be an NBA player, a dream that I wanted to accomplish since I was a kid, it’s quite possible I make more money outside of basketball than I do in basketball when it’s all said and done.”"
Connaughton wants to help continue building a championship culture with the Milwaukee Bucks, and now he has his wish.
The five-year NBA veteran earned himself a lucrative raise in pay this offseason, and now he must justify it. Connaughton is coming off a lackluster 10 game postseason run where he averaged just 4.0 points while shooting 42.9 percent from the field and 34.8 percent from 3-point territory in 17.1 minutes per game. This subpar postseason outing has some fans feasibly uneasy about this extension, especially with the importance of next season in a title or bust campaign.
As one of their more requisite rotational players, the Milwaukee Bucks simply need Connaughton to be better if he will legitimately help them compete for a championship. The Bucks clearly showcased their belief in him to do so with this hefty extension, and time will tell whether the gamble was worth it.
On another note, the signing of Connaughton gives Milwaukee some immediate closure regarding their wing depth, as starting shooting guard Wesley Matthews will reportedly be heading to the Los Angles Lakers on a one-year deal.
Stay tuned here at Behind the Buck Pass for the latest free agency updates and news.