The Milwaukee Bucks shocked the NBA landscape with a four-year, $64 million contract to Gary Trent Jr. This raised so many eyebrows that the league is reportedly launching an investigation to see if this falls into cap circumvention.
Regardless of the results of the investigation, the Trent Jr. signing will have important ramifications for the Bucks. Milwaukee now has to make ensuing moves to thin out the crowded backcourt. The most likely departure candidate following the Trent contract has to be Kevin Porter Jr.
Gary Trent Jr. contract might mean the end of the road for Kevin Porter Jr.
The post-Giannis Antetokounmpo Bucks have a ton of depth in the two guard positions. Ryan Rollins and Tyler Herro are the favorites to start in the backcourt. Rookie Brayden Burries has looked excellent in the Summer League and should play significant minutes right away. This leaves very little playing time for the rest of the guard rotation.
Between Trent Jr., Porter Jr., Caris LeVert, and Kasparas Jakucionis, at least one of them has to go. Not only to open up playing time for the youngsters, but also because the Bucks currently have 17 players on standard deals on their books. Before the season, they have to bring this down to 15. Parting ways with at least one guard makes a lot of sense.
Trent Jr. just signed. Plus, he can play some minutes at small forward. Jakucionis just arrived in the Giannis trade and has some upside as a 20-year-old. So, this has to be between LeVert and Porter Jr.
Both players are on expiring contracts, so trading either of them shouldn't be too difficult. The problem is, the Bucks have to trade them without getting any players back. This means that the acquiring team has to have the cap space to absorb their contract. Since LeVert makes $14.8 million, this could be more challenging.
Porter Jr., on the other hand, only makes $5.4 million for next season. Whenever he was on the court last season, he outplayed that salary by a significant margin. Even though his off-court troubles may push some teams away, all it takes is one team willing to take him on. Given his obvious talent, that shouldn't be too difficult for the Bucks.
The Bucks are unlikely to get much in return for KPJ. He missed most of last season with an injury, and there is a reason he had to opt into his player option. At this point, the Bucks can't worry too much about asset return. Instead, they have to focus on building a roster that makes sense to aid the development of their young players.
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