The Milwaukee Bucks made needed a little more firepower to solidify themselves for the stretch-run of the NBA season. They managed to achieve just that by engaging in a deal with the Houston Rockets to land PJ Tucker.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Houston Rockets are trading PJ Tucker to the Milwaukee Bucks in part of a larger trade package.
“Sources: Houston is trading PJ Tucker, Rodions Kurucs and Bucks’ 2022 first-round pick back to Milwaukee for DJ Augustin, DJ Wilson and 2023 unprotected first-round pick. Houston also gets right to swap its 2021 second-round pick for Milwaukee’s FRP pick unless it falls 1-9.”
The Bucks will be able to field plenty of intriguing lineup combinations defensively. Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the NBA’s top talents on that end and when you factor in Jrue Holiday, Brook Lopez, and Khris Middleton already in the fold, adding PJ Tucker makes it all the more intriguing.
The versatility that Tucker has shown to be able to play any frontcourt position on the floor and be successful will enable the Bucks to legitimately switch everything at a high-level defensively. With Giannis Antetokounmpo as a unique rim protector, that’s an intriguing situation.
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PJ Tucker hasn’t been the most efficient shooter in recent seasons but he’s more than capable of converting on open shots and, in general, making the right play within the flow of the offense. That is all the Bucks need alongside their stars.
There isn’t a whole lot of reason to be excited about this trade for the Rockets and that was expected to be the case. Houston knew they had to move their disgruntled veteran with them being a rebuilding team and needing to clear minutes for younger options.
IT will be fascinating to see how the Milwaukee Bucks ultimately decide to use PJ Tucker in their rotation. They will now be a much deeper defensive team with the various lineup combinations they can throw out during games and will be improved in clutch time against small ball.
