Trade season has started to heat up roughly two months ahead of the NBA trade deadline, and it remains to be seen whether the Milwaukee Bucks will be active in seeking upgrades.
Following an offseason of busy dealings, the team is deprived of assets and financial flexibility, but that does not take them out of the market entirely. There are several targets that the Bucks could view worthy of shaking up the roster for, and that includes pursuing a reunion with J.J. Redick of the New Orleans Pelicans.
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According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania ($$), the Pelicans have received calls regarding the availability of both Lonzo Ball and J.J. Redick. They have expressed an openness to trade them for the right compensation in return. The latter could certainly be an enticing trade target for the Bucks if they are looking to bolster their wing depth ahead of the March 25th deadline.
Redick is an especially compelling trade target because the Bucks reportedly had some previous interest in the 36-year-old sharpshooter was listed last season. Although nothing came to be, he is back on the market. The Bucks and Pelicans certainly got well-acquainted in the offseason after the Jrue Holiday trade, and perhaps that familiarity could be useful in any potential negotiations.
Should the Milwaukee Bucks pursue a J.J. Redick trade from the Pelicans ahead of the trade deadline?
Typically, this would be a no-brainer as Redick has been widely regarded as one of the most prolific 3-point shooters in the league over the past decade. Throughout the first 14 seasons of his career, the sharpshooter racked up a career 41.6 percentage on 5.1 attempts from behind the arc. He could shoot the lights out, which made him an ideal trade target previously for the floor spacing dependent Bucks.
However, Redick has been anything but himself this season by currently having one of the worst seasons of his career. The veteran is averaging just 7.9 points while shooting a career-low 29.8 percent from long range on 5.3 attempts per contest. Redick has simply been awful on the offensive end, and his defense has never been a strong suit either.
Is this shooting slump sure to continue for the rest of the season? Not necessarily. Shooters go through their share of rough patches occasionally, and Redick could certainly come back to earth at any given time. Still, if the Bucks were to have any interest, piecing together a potential trade package will also be a tall task.
Interested or not, the Milwaukee Bucks will likely not be the team to trade for J.J. Redick
Making an expiring $13 million this season, the luxury taxpaying Bucks would have to match salaries entirely in any scenario involving Redick. That means big man Brook Lopez and his $13 million annual salary would almost certainly have to be involved. Whether or not the Bucks would be willing to trade Lopez is a discussion for a different time, but if they were, the Pelicans are likely not looking to take him in return.
Along with Lopez being under contract for the next two seasons following 2020-21, the team already has a center with a hefty price tag attached. New Orleans traded for Steven Adams this offseason to bring some toughness at the center position and immediately inked him to a hefty two-year extension worth $35 million that will kick in after this year.
The Pelicans will likely seek draft capital or young assets in return for Redick, not another starting veteran center getting paid handsomely. In addition to that, New Orleans is already in possession of a large portion of Milwaukee’s draft picks over the next half-decade thanks to the aforementioned Jrue Holiday trade, leaving them with minimal to offer.
While a trade for the floor spacing J.J. Redick would have been fantastic for the Milwaukee Bucks in previous years, his subpar play this season has altered that thinking. Along with that, they are stripped of any meaningful assets for the foreseeable future, and they will likely be better off standing pat.