Gary Sheffield, Jr
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The Milwaukee Bucks have finally landed that star Giannis Antetokounmpo has been waiting for. Tonight’s deal sends Eric Bledsoe, George Hill, and three first-round picks in exchange for New Orleans Pelicans’ guard Jrue Holiday. It’s an absolute monster deal, but it had to be done.
New Orleans is nearing completion of a deal to send G Jrue Holiday to Milwaukee for Eric Bledsoe, George Hill and what’s described as “significant” draft compensation, sources tell ESPN. Teams are still working through the picks in trade.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 17, 2020
After a humiliating early playoff exit, Giannis sat down with Milwaukee’s front office and said that the team needed to get creative to improve this roster. This is what he meant. Trading away three first-round picks isn’t exactly “small market” friendly, but the Bucks had no choice. To get a player of Holiday’s caliber, they needed to give up assets that didn’t hurt their chances in 2020-21. Giannis should be elated at tonight’s news.
Holiday hasn’t gotten a ton of recognition, making just one All-Star Game appearance, but basketball gurus know about his ability on both ends of the court. He’s been named to the NBA all-defense team twice (2018, 2019), so he will pair well with Giannis. Now, the Greek Freak won’t need to guard the other team’s best player and waste energy he could be using late in games. Jrue Holiday is more than capable of playing extended minutes in matchups Milwaukee will see deep in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Keeps getting better
Holiday averaged 19.1 points/game last season, but his real impact will be with his playmaking ability. He scored at that clip while dishing 6.7 assists per contest, which will change Giannis’ world on the offense end. The days of loading up one side of the court because no one else can make a play are over. Don’t be surprised when Giannis uses this new running mate to improve his own game. There’s no official word yet, but it’s now likely Giannis rewards Milwaukee for their aggressiveness by signing a super max deal.
Big day for the city of Milwaukee.
I have no idea why everyone is praising this as a great trade for the Bucks. The Bucks give up Eric Bledsoe (15 ppg), George Hill (10 ppg), and 3 (!) First round draft picks for a career 15 ppg guy? I know Holiday had a good year last year at 19 ppg, but that was out of necessity on a Pelicans team that needed scoring badly.
This is not going to turn out well for the Bucks in the long run. Hell, it may not work out well in the short run. Jrue Holiday is on the wrong side of 30 and is not as great a shooter as everyone is giving him credit for. He ranks 106th in terms of 3-point%. (Guess who ranks #1? George Hill. Bledsoe is 119). And we haven’t even gotten to the 3 first round picks yet. In the grand scheme of things, Holiday is a decent player, not a major difference maker. He comes in at a whopping 92nd in total PER, which is twelve spots behind–you guessed it–Eric Bledsoe.
The Bucks had to take the chance, overpay, because they will never find another Giannis. Keeping him happy is way more important than haggling over a pick or two. If they don’t re-sign Giannis it was STILL worth a try. In today’s player-run league the super-stars have all the leverage. Definitely too much, making it less interesting for fans of teams. But this is also why the NBA is most interesting league in offseasons: player movement. The Bucks might as well fold if Giannis takes off.
I get that they had to overpay for someone, but I thought it would be for a real impact player.