With the latest acquisition of George Hill, the Milwaukee Bucks are trying to climb the NBA ladder as quickly as possible.
The Milwaukee Bucks have been one of the surprise teams in the NBA so far in the 2018-19 season.
At 16-8, they’ve clearly taken to new head coach Mike Budenholzer’s tactics, ranking first in both scoring and 3-pointers made while placing in the top five in both assists and field goal percentage.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has asserted himself as the front-runner for the MVP this season with absurd averages of 26.8 points, 13.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game, while guys like Khris Middleton and Eric Bledsoe have found their niches next to the Greek Freak.
Despite their early success, the Bucks’ front office still felt inclined to upgrade the roster.
That’s exactly what they did by acquiring veteran guard George Hill from the Cleveland Cavaliers and Jason Smith from the Washington Wizards in what was ultimately a three-team deal while shipping out Matthew Dellavedova, John Henson and both their first and second-round picks in 2021 according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
News story on Bucks-Cavs deal wIth @wojespn : https://t.co/m88tcOodU5
— Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN) December 8, 2018
As solid as Smith has been for his for his decade-plus career, the real prize for Milwaukee is Hill, who has spent over 10 seasons in the NBA as one of the better 3-and-D role players.
The 32-year-old should do wonders as another floor spacer next to Giannis, one that can defend multiple positions, make plays for others and brings a bevy of postseason experience.
The Boston Celtics got back Gordon Hayward and Kyrie Irving from injury. The Toronto Raptors acquired Kawhi Leonard in the offseason. The Philadelphia 76ers recently dealt for Jimmy Butler.
All three of those teams will likely be in the Bucks’ way in some form or another as the season rolls on and their additions have the ability to leave Milwaukee in the dust.
Nobody would mistakenly put Hill on the same level as any of those All-Stars, but his arrival in the state of Wisconsin signals a similar willingness by the Bucks to strike while the iron’s still hot.
George Hill expects to take his physical Monday in Milwaukee
— Joe Vardon (@joevardon) December 7, 2018
When it comes to winning, some teams like to keep one foot out the door in order to get a leg up on the inevitable next phase of the organization (see the Cavaliers), but not everyone is granted the opportunity to compete at the highest level, which makes it all the more important to go all in while one still can.
Despite being one of the younger teams in the league, the Bucks don’t have an eternity to build a contender.
The clock on Antetokounmpo’s free agency is forever ticking and while he has shut down any possibility of going elsewhere so far, a lot can happen between now and the summer of 2021.
By bringing in George Hill, Milwaukee isn’t trying to wait out the current regime out East.
Rather, the team is putting all their chips in the middle of the table in order to better position themselves for the immediate future, which should also come in handy once the inevitable time comes to re-sign their franchise superstar.