At the trade deadline, the Milwaukee Bucks made a major move, sending away longtime forward Khris Middleton to the Washington Wizards in a multi-team deal.
Breaking: The Milwaukee Bucks are trading Khris Middleton, AJ Johnson and a pick swap to the Washington Wizards for Kyle Kuzma, Patrick Baldwin Jr. and second-round draft compensation, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/hCOzqqqUXE
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 5, 2025
In exchange, the Bucks received Kyle Kuzma, a talented forward who is well-known for his time on the Los Angeles Lakers, winning the NBA Championship in 2020. However, he has yet to be that person in Milwaukee.
In the 33 games he has played with the Bucks, Kuzma has averaged 14.5 points, 5.6 total rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 0.5 steals per game. This is already a drop from the first half of the season where he was averaging 15.2 points, 5.8 total rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 0.6 steals per game.
This has led to Greg Swartz of BleacherReport labeling this trade Milwaukee’s biggest regret of the season.
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“Trading a franchise icon like Khris Middleton was likely a difficult decision for the Milwaukee Bucks, even if the 33-year-old was a few seasons removed from his prime,” Swartz said. “His $31 million contract was Milwaukee’s big salary matcher to use in a potential deal, especially with Brook Lopez ($23 million) set to become an unrestricted free agent.”
“The Bucks had one (perhaps last) chance to use Middleton’s money and their remaining assets to get a third star next to Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard and try to make another run to the Finals.”
“Kuzma is not that guy. He’s just been OK with the Bucks and isn’t in the ‘third-best-player-on-a-title-team’ caliber. If Milwaukee loses in the first round to the Indiana Pacers and Kuzma has a bad series, it’s going to be a long offseason in Wisconsin.”
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While Kuzma hasn’t necessarily been consistent, there have been glimpses of what he could be for the team. In the final game of the season, he stepped up against the Detroit Pistons, recording 22 points, two total rebounds, and two assists. And that was in only 12 minutes on the floor.
While there are some questions over Kuzma at the moment, there is no doubt that he could easily step up and make himself an important figure on the team.
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