After an active offseason, the Milwaukee Bucks’ roster is full again. Other teams made several significant changes, whether it was via trade or with their free agency signings, but the Bucks largely stood pat.
The Bucks did add a few veterans in free agency, signing Delon Wright, Taurean Prince, and most recently, Gary Trent Jr. But some didn’t like what the Bucks did this offseason, with Trent drawing the most criticism of all.
Gary Trent Jr. blasted for his ‘below average’ defense
One NBA executive who spoke with basketball insider Gery Woelful tore into the Bucks’ decision to sign Trent as their presumptive starting shooting guard.
“I asked an NBA exec to grade Trent’s D and he replied, “Below average. It’s not good.” – Gery Woelful
Woelful went on to add that he expects Milwaukee to have “one of the worst defensive backcourts in the NBA” this season. Again, it’s not that Trent can’t help the Bucks, he’s known for his shooting and his career 38.6% 3-point accuracy backs that up.
However, as the NBA executive noted, Trent’s defensive effort needs to improve if the Bucks want to compete for another championship. So far, in six NBA seasons, Trent hasn’t proven to be an effective defender, and chances are that won’t suddenly change as he begins his seventh year in the pros either. While Trent has averaged 1.2 steals per game in his career, he’s not known for being a consistent defender.
Still, Trent’s addition makes up for the loss of Malik Beasley, who signed with the Detroit Pistons. Not to mention, getting Trent to agree to a contract for the vet minimum is a good bargain for a team that’s paying $48.7 million apiece to Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard next season.
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