DECEMBER 8, 9:00am: As part of the deal, the Wizards also removed the protections on the 2020 second-round pick they owe the Bucks, reports Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). In summation, the trade looks like this, as Smith tweets:
- Bucks receive George Hill, Jason Smith, cash considerations (from Wizards), the Wizards’ 2021 second-round pick (from Cavaliers), and the protections removed on the Wizards’ 2020 second-round pick.
- Cavaliers receive John Henson, Matthew Dellavedova, the Bucks’ 2021 first-round pick (protections detailed below), the Bucks’ 2021 second-round pick, and the Wizards’ 2022 second-round pick.
- Wizards receive Sam Dekker.
DECEMBER 7, 9:25pm: The trade is official, according to a Cavaliers press release. as relayed by Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix.
6:20pm: The Wizards have agreed to make it a three-team deal by acquiring Dekker for big man Jason Smith and a second-round pick, Wojnarowski tweets. The Cavs will swap a 2021 second-rounder with Washington for a 2022 second-rounder, Brian Windhorst of ESPN tweets.
5:05pm: The Bucks have agreed to acquire veteran guard George Hill from the Cavaliers in exchange for guard Matthew Dellavedova, injured center John Henson and first- and second-round picks in 2021, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.
Cleveland is also sending forward Sam Dekker to Milwaukee, Brian Windhorst of ESPN tweets.
As always, the deal is contingent on the players passing physicals.
The Bucks will save approximately $18MM for the 2019/20 season with this move, which will increase their flexibility to make more moves next summer, Wojnarowski notes in a separate tweet. With Khris Middleton and Eric Bledsoe both on track to become free agents in July, that extra flexibility could be crucial.
The Cavs are showing a continued willingness to take on salary in order to acquire future assets, Wojnarowski adds.
There was a sense of urgency in getting this deal done on Friday. These players are now eligible to be aggregated on the February 7th trade deadline, Wojnarowski points out in another tweet. Thus, these players can be combined with other contracts in a deadline deal.
While Cleveland is technically acquiring Milwaukee’s 2021 first-rounder in the deal, it’s likely to get pushed back to 2022. That’s because the first-rounder that Milwaukee owes Phoenix next summer almost certainly won’t change hands until 2020, as it’s protected 1-3 and 17-30 for 2019. Since teams can’t trade future first-round picks in back-to-back seasons, the Cavs would have to wait an extra year to get their pick from Milwaukee.
There are protections on the first-round pick going to Cleveland, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN (Twitter link). The first-rounder is protected 1-14 in 2021; 1-10 in 2022; 1-10 and 25-30 in 2023; and 1-8 in 2024. If still not conveyed by then, it converts to two second-rounders in 2025.
Hill is making $19MM this season but his $18MM salary for next season doesn’t become fully guaranteed until July 1. Only $1MM is guaranteed, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. Milwaukee will almost assuredly cut him loose before then, eating his $1MM partial guarantee. However, Hill can be a contributor this season on a playoff contender.
He joins a guard rotation that includes Eric Bledsoe, Malcolm Brogdon and Tony Snell. The addition of Hill would seemingly reduce Donte DiVincenzo‘s minutes.
Henson is making $11.3MM this season and has a $10.5MM guarantee for next season in the final year of his deal. He recently underwent wrist surgery and could miss the rest of the season.
Dellavedova, who will begin his second stint in Cleveland, is making $9.6MM this season and the same amount next season.
Dekker is making $2.76MM and Milwaukee would have to extend a $3.9MM qualifying offer after the season to make him a restricted free agent.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Wow….seems like an overpay once you said the 2021 first rounder….
Not when you free up 19M
That pick is likely to be in the 20s, so not really.
It’s protected af.
Bucks havent drafted in the 20s in over 2 decades.
17 10 17 2 15 14 10 15 10 8 6 1 8 13 15 9 10 4 11 1 8 8 18.
Well it’s a good thing they didn’t trade any draft picks from the last 2 decades and instead traded one from the future.
The best indicator of future success is past behavior. Ill believe itll be a 20s when it actually happens. Until then their pick has a higher chance of falling in the teens given how the franchise operates.
Dude just read about how protected that pick is. There’s a good chance it will end up being a 2nd rounder. I don’t get why the Cavs did this deal.
The Bucks are a winning team, with likely low picks, so your concern should be that the pick is low, not that it won’t be ceded until 2025.
Thank God we got a first rounder for 20 million more committed to bad contracts in 2019-20. Delly and Henson are pricey bench pieces.
That pick is ultra protected. Read the details… There’s a good chance it turns into a worthless 2nd rounder.
First off, second rounders are not worthless. Secondly, it doesn’t convert to one second rounder. It converts to 2 second rounders. But it is highly likely to be traded before that happens. The Bucks are probably not going to be in the top 10 of the draft from 2022-2024. At least not the whole time.
I completely disagree about 2nd rounders having much value. Teams are literally trying to give them away sometimes. It’s not at all like the NFL where 2nd rounders have a ton of value. Sure some 2nd rounders have made it big, but it’s very very rare.
It depends on the position of the 2nd round pick, the depth of the draft, and the team. A team paying the tax wants a 2nd rounder because that’s a cheap way to fill a roster spot. A playoff team will often use a 2nd rounder to grab a mature college player that can contribute right away.
But a bad team? They don’t want em. They usually have enough young guys already. They will trade or sell a 2nd for the right price.
I guess some years a 2nd rounder is worth more than others, but overall their value is extremely limited in the NBA.
It doesn’t matter because the bucks are a playoff team and the pick isn’t protected for them finishing in the playoffs. It will convey as a first rounder in the 20’s.
Well yeah they’re a playoff team this year, but you never know how the future will play out a couple years down the line. Especially in a small market, and possible injuries. I can see a chance it switches to 2nd rounders for sure.
I agree, it seems like too much salary to take on. If they are moved at the deadline like making the deal now allows, that would change my mind
Quality backups for bucks. Real get for cavs is first rounder in 2021 and gives more playing time to sexton. Solid for both sides!
That pick is ultra protected. Read the details… There’s a good chance it turns into a worthless 2nd rounder.
Delle the true goat is back
Second good trade in a row for Altman. . . or at least non-horrible. . .
BTW I don’t think the 2021 draft will be the double-strong draft. That’s 2022
Delly’s run in CLE was enjoyable. Maybe someone is interested in Tristan, he’s having a good year at 27. Along with Nance & Zizic, Henson isn’t really needed.
How can you reliably project the 2021/2022 drafts lol
2022 is when the one and dones will be combined with the seniors allowed to go straight to the NBA for the first time. Instead of having 7-8 good picks, you’ll have 14-16.
You’ll also have a lot of volatility. We know a lot less about players in HS than we would after spending a year playing NCAAB/some other form of pro ball.
I was thinking the same thing as super sinker. Those kids are between 15 and 17 years old now
Where is the 2021 1st coming from? I thought the Bucks still owe the Suns a 1st, likely in 2020.
Reading is hard…
Reading? That is Giving him far too much credit!
Literally read the article.
Dana’s rundown of the 2021 r1 pick situation came in late to the article. @cong’s question was a good one at the time.
How does that make a contending team better?
Henson is out for a long time, if not the rest of the year, so he’s not going to help Milwaukee. Hill is a minor upgrade on Delle so besides that, Milwaukee’s main benefit is the cap savings for next year which they can use on Middleton. And while its unlikely, the Bucks could try to flip Hill at the trade deadline for some additional help. His cap hit is high enough that you could get a solid piece or two back. A team that fell out of the playoff race and looking to get something back for a pending FA or a vet blocking minutes for a younger guy might take Hill and a draft pick considering his $1m guarantee for next year.
George Hill is a significantly better player than Dellavadova.. come on
Should’ve tossed that for Ariza
Smith to the bucks i takea it?
Milwaukee could always buy a late first rounder whatever year they trade their pick to Cleveland and then they can trade the next year’s pick. You can trade YOUR first rounder every year just as long as you make any pick in the first. If they wanted, after they made the pick they could always trade him away and it would still count.
Yes, given a choice, MIL may prefer giving up the r1 in 2021 even if it means waiting a year for a r1 in the bonanza year 2022.
And trading for a 2021 r1 15-30 to cede to CLE would accomplish that.
Doing that will take still more assets though. . . hmm.
CLE had to do something like that to get Kyle Korver.
I wonder which draft most NBA GMs would prefer having a r1 in, in a choice between: 2021 *or* 2022 less a trading asset.
Finally !! I can’t stand Henson
Wizards did lowkey good deal here. Saved some luxury tax and upgraded player.
Wall should like the active Dekker much more than Smith.
Fair trade for both teams in terms of draft pick compensation taking on $$. This isn’t a current dump into cap space. Bucks actually take on a few mm in salary this year, and Cavs and Wiz save small amounts. While, the Cavs take on 21 mm, it’s only for one year.
Last summer, the Nets got essentially the same package to take on the same 21 mm amount from Denver and they took it immediately into their cap space. And there was very little cap space around. Many teams have space for 2019/20 right now.
The Bucks really needed that capspace. They were at $96.7mil with Bledsoe, Middleton, Brogdon & BLopez to sign. Middleton will get near-max and,
I bet the Lakers will bid for Bledsoe. Rondo makes $9mil, is 32, injured, and has averaged 61 games p/yr since his last allstar year; Ball may not be good enough for team ambitions; Irving is the only FA clearly better; and Bledsoe is a James friend & Rich Paul client.
Also, I am thinking Bledsoe at #16 on HR’s FA list and Kemba at #8 should be reversed.
The good news for MIL, besides dumping about $18.3mil with the trade, is that if LAL goes for Bledsoe, MIL should get advance notice of details via Rich Paul and can plan for it. But that’s a lot of ifs…
dan gibson’s doing his best to purge a terrible line-up, he obviously doesn’t remember draymond green “you never here no one say im going to cleveland”.
Lol. What? What point you trying to make here? What about Draymond Green now?
name the best free agent the cavs signed in the past 10 yrs
LeBron James?
Seems like a good deal for MKE.
Basically they get the best player in the real and get off $19m next year, for the price of a protected 1st?
Trading 1sts for non-impact players is generally a no-no, but this makes sense.
Perhaps means MKE is going to get serious about UFA and Middleton coming back.
2nd round picks are worth it to teams that dont necessarily want guaranteed contracts. Like the good teams may trade out of the back end of the 1st.
the bucks will forever be the best mediocre team to signing mediocre players and making sideway moves. it’s always been that way and always will be. buck up
Could we possibly see that 2019 Nuggets 2nd round pick go to the Bucks? the standings currently sat so. I think Denver would be ecstatic if that happens!