Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Bucks Check Out Green; Hawks-Bucks trade?

I don't know what's more surprising--the Bucks getting mentioned on ESPN or the Journal-Sentinel actually being on the ball with some off-season happenings. OK, so it was ESPN Radio, but still. Either way, lightning struck twice tonight:

  • Ric Bucher on ESPN radio mentioned that the Bucks have talked trade with the Hawks, possibly involving a package of Charlie Villanueva and the 6th pick for the Hawks' 3rd overall selection. The Bucks could then use the pick to take Al Horford, the best complement in the draft to Bogut, but who most likely will be gone by the 4th pick. The Hawks meanwhile may very well want to take Mike Conley--certainly the most logical choice for them--but realize that he's not quite that high on most draft boards. The first problem with this is that it's a huge price to pay for the Bucks to move up three spots--while CV may not have had a convincing sophomore season, he's still an extremely talented young big man who the Bucks have yet to see at full speed for an extended period. I am a huge fan of Horford, but is he really worth Mike Conley AND Charlie Villanueva? It's unlikely, so I would guess that some other player might be coming from Atlanta. The most obvious would be Josh Childress, who would give the Bucks some much-need swingman depth. Still, would both teams do Childress/Horford for Conley/Villanueva? It's possible. The other problem is that with the Grizzlies supposedly focused on Horford at 3, what would they do if he's gone? They could also use a PG, so the trade could hit a serious snag if the Grizzlies grab Conley at 4. Then again, it's also possible the Hawks like Brandan Wright and Yi a lot, and if Horford goes at three they'd be guaranteed to have their choice of at least one of Conley, Yi and Wright at six.
  • Charles Gardner wrote about the Jeff Green's workout with the Bucks. An army of staff made the trip to DC, including Larry Harris, player personnel director Dave Babcock, coach Larry Krystkowiak, assistants Brian James and Bill Peterson, as well as Senator Kohl. Sounds like they were pretty impressed, and the sheer number of people with important titles suggests Green is very much in the mix should the Bucks keep the sixth pick. I like Green's game a lot--as previously stated, he does pretty much everything well, has good size, a great mind for the game and he looks ready to contribute right away.

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