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Wednesday morning marked the end of an era in Milwaukee, as the Bucks agreed to trade franchise icon Khris Middleton and AJ Johnson to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Kyle Kuzma and Patrick Baldwin Jr. The two teams also swapped draft capital.
A former second-round pick, Middleton had been in Milwaukee since 2013 when he arrived as part of the Brandon Knight-Brandon Jennings trade. Over the past decade, Middleton had become a fan favorite for his clutch shot-making, steady play and playoff heroics during the Bucks’ 2021 title run.
Middleton departs with his name littered atop the Bucks’ all-time leaderboards: second in games played (735), third in points (12,586), seventh in rebounds (3,598), third in assists (2,990), fifth in steals (870) and first in 3-pointers (1,382). One day, he could have his No. 22 raised to the rafters inside Fiserv Forum.
For now, though, the Bucks are thinking only of the present and their chance to win a title in the near future. Let’s grade the trade, which reportedly came with Giannis Antetokounmpo’s approval.
Bucks grade: C-
For the past few weeks, the Bucks have widely been described as one of the most desperate teams ahead of the deadline, and for good reason. They’ve won one playoff series since their championship in 2021 and the title window with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard and an aging core was closing fast.
Furthermore, even though they’ve bounced back from a brutal start, they haven’t looked like a true contender this season. They’re 0-8 against the top three teams in the Eastern Conference, the Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics and New York Knicks, and sit in fifth place at 26-22.
One of the biggest reasons the Bucks are stuck in the middle of the pack is Middleton’s continued injury issues and inconsistent play. He had double ankle surgery over the summer, the latest in a string of procedures dating back to his knee sprain in the 2022 playoffs, and missed the first 21 games of the season.
Since his return, Middleton has been relegated to a bench role and remains on a minutes restriction. There are nights where he looks like his old self, but others where he’s an afterthought. In fact, he’s gone scoreless three times — the only three times in his career where he’s played at least 15 minutes without registering a point.
It makes complete sense that the Bucks were looking for an upgrade on this diminished version of Middleton, which is why they had been linked to the likes of Jimmy Butler, Zach LaVine and even Bradley Beal. Those deals were proving difficult, however, namely because of their second-apron restrictions, which did not allow them to aggregate salaries in a trade. LaVine eventually came off the board, Beal, who has a no-trade clause, seems happy to stay in Phoenix and Butler is insistent on getting to Phoenix.
Instead of resigning themselves to working on the margins, the Bucks pivoted to Kuzma, which, as Zach Lowe put it, was “quite a vote of no-confidence in Middleton.”
Middleton is one of the best players in franchise history, a champion and a key locker room figure, and the Bucks dumped him and their most recent first-round pick for a guy who is having by far the least-efficient season of his career and ranks last in the league in win shares.
Again, trying to find an upgrade on Middleton is totally understandable. Trading him for this version of Kuzma is not.
Put aside all of the sentimentality aspects — after all, leaning too hard in that direction is how you get left behind in this league — Middleton is a much better shooter and playmaker than Kuzma, as well as a proven playoff performer. Middleton’s teammates rave about his ability to organize their offense, something that has often been an issue since Damian Lillard’s arrival, and he has an innate connection with Antetokounmpo. He also doesn’t need the ball in his hands to be useful on the offensive end.
In terms of youth and athleticism, as well as size on the wing and availability, the Bucks got an upgrade. That’s about all they can point to. Even if you want to make the case that Kuzma will be better once he’s off this awful Wizards team, he does not solve the issues presented by Middleton’s declining defense or inconsistent offensive performances.
If Kuzma was the best the Bucks could do right now, they would have been better off sticking with Middleton and looking for a different move this summer.
Off the court, the salary cap aspect of this deal cannot be overlooked. Everyone assumed the Bucks would try to get under the second apron by dealing someone like Pat Connaughton, but moving Middleton did the trick. They can now combine salaries in trades, and are likely not done dealing.
Wizards grade: B
There’s not really too much analysis to do here for the Wizards, who, despite back-to-back wins, are enduring a historically bad season at 8-41.
On the Kuzma front, he has been terrible this season and is under contract through 2027. They were certainly glad to move off his long-term money (Kuzma is owed roughly $40 million over the next two seasons). Furthermore, his departure will open up more opportunities for their young players.
For however long Middleton stays around, he’ll be a good locker room influence, and even though he’s almost certain to pick up his player option for 2025-26 this summer, the Wizards might be able to re-route him to a contender for more assets. If not, he’ll at least be off the books sooner than Kuzma would have been.
For their trouble, the Wizards get Johnson, who was the No. 23 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. He’s barely played for the Bucks this season, but has shown some flashes in the G League and is an incredible athlete. Still just 20 years old, Johnson fits the Wizards’ timeline and is another young talent for them to potentially develop.
The 2028 secondary swap could also provide dividends.
