NBA trade rumors surrounding power forward/center Greg Monroe had died down recently, but the Milwaukee Bucks might have a new suitor for their talented big man.
According to Yibada , the Boston Celtics may now have Greg Monroe on their radar. Reports indicate that Boston and Milwaukee may be discussing a trade that would send Monroe and third-year forward Jabari Parker to the Celtics. In return, the Bucks would receive power forward Amir Johnson , guard Marcus Smart , and forward Jonas Jerebko .
It is no secret that Milwaukee has been shopping Greg Monroe around the league for weeks. The team signed Monroe to a three-year, $50 million contract in 2015, but despite Monroe’s productivity, the Bucks are now trying to get out from under the weight of Monroe’s huge contract. Statistically, Greg Monroe had a good 2015-16 season for Milwaukee, but his style of play does not fit what the Bucks are trying to do going forward.
The club wants to play at an up-tempo pace on offense, but Monroe’s game is a poor fit for that kind of approach. Greg Monroe is an “old school” big man who has post-up skills and mostly plays around the basket. In order for him to be effective, the team has to use half-court sets where the ball is thrown into Monroe down low. The Bucks don’t want to play this way, so they are looking to unload Monroe to a team who values his skill set.
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Milwaukee has been unsuccessful in finding a trade partner for Monroe, and the latest batch of NBA trade rumors are hinting that the Bucks might need to include another quality player (such as Jabari Parker) in order to move Monroe. If Milwaukee is truly set on getting rid of Monroe this off-season, they may have to part with an asset like Parker to entice another team to close a deal with them.
The Boston Celtics are trying to bring in another prominent player before training camp opens, as reported by the Sporting News . The Celtics have been linked to several star performers this summer — Russell Westbrook, Blake Griffin, and Kevin Love to name a few, but no agreement has been reached thus far. Boston may now be turning their attention toward Greg Monroe, particularly if they can also acquire a young frontcourt talent like Jabari Parker in the process.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPApN6oiIbM&feature=player_detailpage
Greg Monroe would appear to be a good fit in Boston, playing alongside high-priced free agent signee Al Horford, who was recently brought in from the Atlanta Hawks. Monroe would be an upgrade over Amir Johnson, and losing Jerebko and Smart would have a very minor impact on the Celtics’ depth. In the short term, Jabari Parker would have to battle for minutes on this team, but his talent and potential could make him an important part of Boston’s future plans.
The Milwaukee Bucks made some moves earlier in the summer that would make this trade scenario with Boston much less attractive to them. The team spent $52 million to re-sign center Miles Plumlee, who has the ability to perform in the fast-paced attack the Bucks prefer. In a separate move, Milwaukee negotiated a sign-and-trade to obtain point guard Matthew Dellavedova from the Cleveland Cavaliers. Dellavedova got $38 million to become Milwaukee’s primary backup at point guard.
New deals for Plumlee/Teletovic/Dellavedova total nearly $33MM on Bucks cap. Full breakdown: https://t.co/O23MOlJ1Tf pic.twitter.com/VEh8ve7PEL
— Hoops Rumors (@HoopsRumors) August 24, 2016
Due to the commitment the Bucks have made to both Plumlee and Dellavedova, making a major trade to bring in players (Amir Johnson and Marcus Smart) who would fill very similar roles makes no sense at all. Greg Monroe and Jabari Parker both have significant value, but Milwaukee would not be getting anything they need out of this trade. The Bucks do appear ready to jettison Greg Monroe, but they will definitely wait on a much better trade option than this rumored swap with the Celtics.
The latest NBA trade rumors are pointing toward a five-player deal between the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks. The Celtics would like to take advantage of the fact that the Bucks want to move Greg Monroe and his cumbersome contract, but Milwaukee would have to be very desperate to accept this particular trade offer.
[Photo by Morry Gash/AP Images]