Report: Pelicans trade Nikola Mirotic to Bucks
The New Orleans Pelicans have agreed to send Nikola Mirotic to the Milwaukee Bucks, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. He cited a source with Zach Lowe.
Sources with Zach Lowe: Nikola Mirotic to Milwaukee.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 7, 2019
The Bucks will send Jason Smith and Stanley Johnson to New Orleans. Wojnarowski reported that the deal also includes the Detroit Pistons.
New Orleans-Milwaukee trade will include Pistons and send multiple second-road picks to the Pelicans for Mirotic, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 7, 2019
The fifth-year power forward is averaging 16.7 points and 8.3 rebounds over 32 games for the Pelicans. Mirotic, who will turn 28 next week, was traded to New Orleans last year and helped the team to the Western Conference semifinals.
The move will give a boost to the NBA-leading Bucks (40-13), who are preparing for their own playoff push in the Eastern Conference.
[Keep up with every trade to know at the NBA deadline]
According to Marc Stein, the Pelicans will get four second-round picks in the deal. Two of those are from the Washington Wizards, per Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated.
Two of the second-round picks New Orleans will acquire from Milwaukee are Washington's suddenly very intriguing 2020 and 2021 selections, according to a source.
— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) February 7, 2019
The Bucks acquired Johnson in a Wednesday trade that sent center Thon Maker to the Detroit Pistons. Johnson, 22, is averaging 7.5 points and 3.6 rebounds in his fourth season and becomes a restricted free agent in 2019.
Smith, 32, is day-to-day with left knee soreness. He played in six games for the Bucks this year, totaling 13 points. He was traded from the Washington Wizards in early December.
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