Grading the Khris Middleton-Kyle Kuzma trade: What does this do for the Bucks and Wizards?

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The Milwaukee Bucks just made a trade that in many ways will be franchise-altering.

Khris Middleton, who helped the Bucks win the 2021 NBA championship and was a mainstay who’d been around for as long as Giannis Antetokounmpo, is now a Washington Wizard, which already feels weird to type out.

Here’s the full deal:

Wizards receive: Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson and a 2028 first-round pick swap

Bucks receive: Kyle Kuzma, Patrick Baldwin Jr. and a 2025 second-round selection

Kyle Kuzma (left) and Khris Middleton are trading places. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Milwaukee Bucks: C

It’s an odd deal, on many levels, for both teams. The Bucks had seen firsthand that Middleton was a shell of his former self due to myriad injuries. On the surface, there is a level of logic in pivoting off him, even for a player who spent the previous two seasons averaging 21.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4 assists per game.

However, the Bucks do lose key components in Middleton. While his game is no longer built for 35 minutes per night, the 33-year-old wing is still an efficient shooter (40.7% from deep), a steady playmaker and a calming presence on the floor.

Yes, his defense has slipped due to the injuries and that’s certainly an area of concern, but it’s not like the Bucks got a player back who stands out on that end of the floor.

Middleton’s mindful approach to basketball shouldn’t be taken for granted. The Bucks can still trust him to make decisions, be mistake-free and act as the adult in the room on and off the court.

The Bucks did get under the second apron with this deal and can now aggregate contracts in trades. But they have just $1.3 million of wiggle room and very few assets to play around with. Gaining flexibility is good, but let’s wait to see if they can utilize it before we talk that angle up too much.

Given that Kuzma, 29, is going through one of the roughest seasons of his career (15.2 points, 48.8 TS%), there’s risk involved here. The deal seems, on the surface, to be one where the Bucks acquired a player capable of having his minutes extended, but that’s where you have to wonder what’s best: 23 minutes of ironclad…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/grading-the-khris-middleton-kyle-kuzma-trade-what-does-this-do-for-the-bucks-and-wizards-181412019.html

Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2025-02-05 18:14:00

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