JUNE 20: The trade is now official, according to a press release from the Bucks. The 30th pick was used to select Kevin Porter Jr., but the Pistons are flipping his rights to the Cavaliers.
JUNE 19: The Bucks have reached an agreement to trade Tony Snell to Detroit, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Milwaukee will get Jon Leuer in return and will also send the 30th pick in tomorrow’s draft to the Pistons (Twitter link).
The move is a cost-cutting measure for the Bucks, as Snell is due $11.4MM next season and has a $12.2MM player option for 2020/21. Leuer is entering the final year of his contract and will make $9.5MM.
Milwaukee will save about $2MM next season, along with a $1.9MM cap hold for pick No. 30, notes Matt Velazquez of The Journal-Sentinel (Twitter links). The larger savings come from having Snell off the books in the future.
Milwaukee is entering a crucial summer with Brook Lopez, Malcolm Brogdon, Khris Middleton and Nikola Mirotic all headed for free agency. Every dollar the team can unload will help with luxury tax concerns. Once the deal with Detroit is complete, the Bucks can create up to $14MM in cap room that could be used to re-sign Lopez, notes Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link).
Snell, 27, was a rotation player for the Bucks this season, averaging 6.0 points per night in 74 games. Leuer appeared in just 41 games for the Pistons last season and played less than 10 minutes per night.