After starting the year 1-6, the Milwaukee Bucks have turned their season around over the past few weeks. With a dominant Giannis Antetokounmpo and a revitalized Damian Lillard leading the charge, the Bucks have won 13 of their last 16 games. Their recent success has brought the team up to the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference.
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Winning the NBA Cup Finals against OKC has just solidified their return to contender status and thrust Milwaukee into the rumor mill surrounding the trade deadline. One name that is heavily linked to Cream City is that of Lillard’s former teammate, CJ McCollum.
BetOnline has given the Bucks the highest odds of landing the veteran guard’s signature. However, CJ’s brother, Errick McCollum suggested that there might not be much to back up these claims.
“Idk if this true or not but everything is unpredictable in the league. My brother is happy in New Orleans and has become a staple in the community,” McCollum’s brother wrote on X.
At the same time, Errick has seen how well CJ gelled with Dame in Portland. He admitted that the idea of them reuniting is an appealing one to him too. “BUT if this did happen, this right here would be something special to watch [emoji] they chemistry A1.“
Idk if this true or not but everything is unpredictable in the league. My brother is happy in New Orleans and has become a staple in the community…. BUT if this did happen, this right here would be something special to watch 👀 they chemistry A1 https://t.co/0D1DYFLhjJ
— Errick McCollum (@ErrickM3) December 18, 2024
The two shared the backcourt for nearly a decade, and even without any silverware to show for their partnership, McCollum and Lillard were one of the premier duos of the 2010s. Their inside-out game would certainly be effective around Giannis and his gravity. But above all, what this trade would bring to Milwaukee, is some high-level chemistry.
“Me and CJ had a real friendship,” Dame said on ‘The Draymond Green Show’ two years ago. “We spent time together. We went on vacation together, I was at his house, he was at my house, we talked on the phone late at night about our struggles, you know what I mean?”
Their partnership began with its back against the wall. Most analysts were wary about their size in the backcourt and how that would translate to winning basketball. McCollum himself didn’t believe that their pairing could work eventually, but the history speaks for itself.
In their very first season as starters, CJ and Dame led the Trail Blazers to a 4-2 series win against the Lob City Clippers. It would mark the start of a potent offensive partnership, one that Lillard envisioned even when McCollum was a bench warmer.
“He’s like, ‘We’re gonna play one day,’ and I’m like, ‘Bro, I don’t see it.’ And then he always seen it, and sure enough, it ended up happening,” CJ revealed last year.
Bringing this backcourt to Milwaukee will certainly bolster the team’s offense and provide Doc Rivers with an additional ball-handler to run pick-and-rolls with Antetokounmpo. Though, as starting guards, Lillard and McCollum will bring the same defensive concerns that plagued their stint in Portland.
If, however, CJ is willing to play more minutes with the bench, then he can really dominate with the second unit and help the team maintain their position when Giannis and Dame go to the bench.
Regardless of the potential fit, this trade hinges on the Bucks’ perspective on Khris Middleton. As a second-apron team, Milwaukee can’t aggregate contracts in a trade, so the only player they can trade that matches CJ’s contract, is Middleton. The 33-year-old has been with the Bucks since 2015 and earned three All-Star selections during his tenure there.
