Recently, Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley put out a list of trades every NBA team can make, listing a mock deal for each team that is supposed to be realistic. Some of the suggestions are more realistic than others, and his suggestion for the Milwaukee Bucks falls somewhere right in the middle of the spectrum.
The mock deal between the Bucks and Kings
The Milwaukee Bucks do have one open roster spot as it stands today, so they could potentially accept this deal without having to release any players. However, that spot may be valuable, should the Bucks be in on any remaining free agents that are still available, such as Gary Trent Jr.
Why is the author suggesting that the Milwaukee Bucks trade Bobby Portis for his 2015 draftmate Trey Lyles, Keon Ellis and a second-round pick? Mainly because they're looking for someone outside the Milwaukee Bucks' starting lineup with substantial value.
Buckley also suggests that because Trey Lyles shot just two percent lower on 3-point attempts (38.4 to Bobby's 40.7) that the Bucks could just insert Lyles into the same role while gaining some defensive flexibility, but is that really the case?
Comparing Bobby Portis to Trey Lyles by the numbers, thanks to Stathead, Lyles looks like a downgrade almost across the board entirely, and in the areas where Portis isn't better, the differences are negligible.
In 2023-24, Portis averaged 13.8 points and 7.4 rebounds on 50.8 field goal shooting, 40.7 3-point shooting and 79.0 percent free throw shooting. Trey Lyles last year averaged 7.2 points and 4.4 rebounds on 44.5 field goal shooting, 38.4 3-point shooting and 70.0 percent free throw shooting. To be fair, Portis played 4.5 more minutes per game and had an eight percent higher usage rate.
That said, what do the rest of the numbers say outside the averages? Let's break down this mock.