The Milwaukee Bucks came away as the winners in the P.J. Tucker sweepstakes, landing the versatile forward in a trade with the Houston Rockets. Plenty of contenders expressed interest in Tucker, but it was Milwaukee who ultimately landed him. Now, they could use some help in the back-court and New York Knicks veteran Austin Rivers could be a target.
To acquire Tucker, the Bucks traded D.J. Augustin, D.J. Wilson, and a 2023 first-round pick in exchange for Tucker, Rodions Kurucks, and their own 2022 first-round pick back. While Tucker will help shore things up in the front-court for Milwaukee, they now have a hole in their back-court.
Augustin was their backup point guard, filling in for Jrue Holiday when he tested positive for COVID-19. Without him, starting shooting guard Donte DiVencenzo is listed as the team’s backup point guard with Bryn Forbes behind him.
The team needs to figure something out in the back-court to soak up the minutes left behind by Augustin. According to Zach Lowe of ESPN, a player to keep an eye on as the Bucks scour the trade and buyout market is Austin Rivers of the Knicks.
Rivers sounded like a player that was on his way out of town in a recent interview. He has been away from the team recently on paternity leave but has not been in the rotation since Derrick Rose was acquired from the Detroit Pistons.
The former Duke Blue Devil signed a very team-friendly three-year, $10 million deal with the last two years of the deal being team options. Teams will line up to acquire a veteran with playoff experience that will cost that little toward the salary cap not only this season but for the following two as well.
Rivers has had some big performances against the Utah Jazz this season, scoring 23 and 25 points in those matchups, but has been inconsistent otherwise. However, he is a capable ball-handler and could provide some scoring punch for a backcourt in need of it.
If the Knicks do in fact make Rivers available in trade talks, expect multiple teams to join the Bucks in the bidding. With injuries in their backcourt, it would be smart for the Knicks to bring Rivers back. Alas, if the relationship is too far gone to repair, getting something for him in a trade instead of a buyout is the way to go.
