The Milwaukee Bucks are widely expected to be active in negotiations once the trade market opens up.
Starting wing Khris Middleton has not appeared in a game yet this season. If the Bucks have lost confidence in their star wing, they could make a move in an attempt to fill the void left by his injury. The team can't exactly afford to wait out his recovery all season, as Middleton continues to ramp up.
A name to watch in upcoming trade talks is gritty Houston Rockets wing Dillon Brooks. Brooks has the ability to start alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard, Brook Lopez, and Middleton, eventually. Brooks provides a competitive mindset that would help the Bucks during inevitable lapses of effectiveness.
Bleacher Report's Greg Swartz noted in a recent story that "Brooks brings the edge that this soft Bucks defense (112.6 rating) has lacked and is a good enough shooter to keep the floor open."
Brooks is known as a hard worker defensively—Rivers has the optionality to match up Brooks with the opposing team's best offensive weapon, depending on the opponent. The 28-year-old veteran also is shooting 40.6 percent from three this season on 5.3 attempts per game. In 2023, he was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team.
Second apron restrictions that are imposed on the Bucks will make this potential deal more challenging to work out. However, the salaries of Milwaukee's Bobby Portis and Pat Connaughton match Brooks' salary nearly identically. The easiest path toward an accepted trade seems to be pairing those two veterans with some draft capital.
The veteran forward is expendable for the Rockets because of their abundance of young talent at the position. Trading Brooks would open up more playing time for 2024 third pick Reed Sheppard, 2023 fourth pick Amen Thompson, and 2023 first-rounder Cam Whitmore.
The development of this young talent should be Houston's top priority, rather than playing Brooks over 30 minutes a night.
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