Bucks possibly in the mix for Kyle Kuzma, Cody Martin

Updates on the mooted pursuit of Kuzma and Cody Martin entering the deadline frame

Yesterday, we gathered up the rumor mill rumblings involving the Milwaukee Bucks as the NBA Trade Deadline looms this Thursday, February 6th. As the week marches on some more intel has come across the wire, so please consider this your daily trade deadline gossip session. The interesting part? We’ve got a new name in the mix.

First, an update on Kyle Kuzma. As Van laid out in an extensive article on the topic (with plenty of instructive detail about the cap acrobatics at play here), the Bucks and Washington Wizards have “had conversations” on the 29 year-old forward. He is making $23.5 million this year and due to Milwuakee’s second apron restrictions, a Kuzma-for-Khris Middleton deal is the “cleanest” option available as far as the CBA goes. There are some other permutations, but the core of any potential trade would likely include those two plus draft capital going from Milwaukee to Washington in some fashion.

The update today is further confirmation from media closer to the Wizards that the two teams have been chatting. Per David Aldridge and Josh Robbins of The Athletic:

Two league sources said the Wizards and Milwaukee Bucks have explored a potential deal in which Milwaukee would send Khris Middleton and draft capital to Washington for Kuzma… Exchanging Middleton’s salary for Kuzma’s would help the Bucks move under the second apron, a significant goal for the Bucks. But Washington would almost certainly demand a future pick or two be attached with Middleton to help Milwaukee achieve that goal.

Jake Fischer of The Stein Line also kept Middleton-Kuzma in the mix of his rumor updates concerning Milwaukee, so while there isn’t new intel there it suggests neither side has opted of any possible discussion on the matter.

One take is that of there being smoke and thus fire. Another is that front offices canvas the entire league like mad in the days leading up to the deadline and that it isn’t always clear just how live these talks are. Whether trading Khris Middleton for a player like Kuzma—with all the attendant impacts it would have on the rotation, Milwaukee’s cap flexibility this summer, and the team’s long-term draft asset base—is in the eye of the beholder.

The newest front in Milwaukee’s quest for a deadline deal, though, has opened up around Pat Connaughton. In the same piece from Fischer above, the Bucks have apparently intensified their search for a new home for Connaughton, with the Martin twins as primary targets:

Two possible Connaughton trades that would serve as a backup options for the Bucks to make perimeter defensive improvements are also said to have emerged in the event that a splashier trade does not materialize. Sources say Milwaukee has eyed both Philadelphia’s Caleb Martin and Charlotte’s Cody Martin, who each make less than Connaughton’s $9.4 million salary.

As is tradition, while typing this article up Caleb Martin was moved to the Dallas Mavericks:

So we can somewhat comfortably take him off the board.

That does leave Cody as a possible option. Martin is making $8.3 million and has a non-guaranteed $8.7 million salary next year in his age 30 season (it will be fully guaranteed on June 30th, 2025). He’s appeared in 39 games for the Hornets this year, and is averaging 7.8 points on .433/.323/.694 shooting splits. As Fischer outlined, any play for Martin would be made in a bid to theoretically strengthen Milwaukee’s perimeter defense from the bench (plus getting slightly younger and cheaper at one of the veteran rotation slots).

As far as Charlotte is concerned, acquiring Connaughton and his likely exercising of a $9.4 million player option would mean giving up the flexibility of getting off Martin’s deal completely should they want to this summer. Their competitive timeline is unlikely to accelerate into next season, but it’d mean committing a larger chunk of their cap space and a roster slot for 2025-2026 depending on Connaughton’s decision. Nabbing some “promising” second-round draft capital—depending on your projection of Milwaukee’s relative direction of travel—could be worth the trouble.

Pat Connaughton being the subject of a possible trade is not surprising, but it is informative to have an idea the kind of player the Bucks are hoping to get back to fill his roster slot in the event of a deal.

So there we have it, some rumors that range from the roster tinkering to the historic foundation-altering, and we still have about 48 hours to go. The thrust of Milwaukee’s trade deadline effort is still rooted in building a competitive roster around Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard for this season while grasping for flexibility to keep retooling into the future. It’ll be a busy and potentially very consequential couple of days at 1111 Vel R. Philips Avenue.