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Cory Elfrink

Spurs Land Jefferson

June 23, 2009 2:19pm CDT

The NBA offseason has launched its first landscape-altering move. On Tuesday, ESPN.com reported that the Milwaukee Bucks dealt Richard Jefferson to the San Antonio Spurs for Kurt Thomas, Bruce Bowen, and Fabricio Oberto.

The move is a coup for the Spurs, who managed to move three of their four oldest players for a dynamic small forward capable of scoring 20 points per game. That leaves Michael Finley as the elder statesman of what was the league's oldest team a season ago. Finley, Manu Ginobili, and Roger Mason now figure to rotate as the starting shooting guard and sixth-man. This trade unquestionably upgrades the Spurs, a team that could have competed for the title last season if they had stayed healthy.

However, the Spurs are certainly in an interesting scenario. They now have only eight players on their roster, and they are already near the luxury tax. Also, aside from Tim Duncan, Matt Bonner is the only player capable of playing power forward or center. They will have to get creative in filling out the remainder of their roster, but they have the prestige, talent and title hopes to draw some elite talent for the mid-level exception or a portion of it. Who? Rasheed Wallace, Antonio McDyess, Joe Smith, Zaza Pachulia, and Rasho Nesterovic come to mind. Also, if the players they traded are released from the Bucks, any of them could be back with the Spurs next season.

As for the Bucks, they save at least $3 million dollars for this summer. That money figures to go towards retaining Charlie Villanueva and Ramon Sessions, both of whom are about to become restricted free agents. However, they will likely save even more money. Bowen's $4 million deal is not guaranteed, meaning the team will likely waive him, clearing up a total of $7 million. Bowen was virtually ineffective all of last season as his age (38) clearly caught up with him.

Oberto and Thomas may also be approached by the Bucks with buyouts. They stand to make a combined $7.3 million next season. Nothing in terms of buyouts has been discussed to this point, but Oberto is 34 and Thomas will be 37 next season. With Andrew Bogut, Dan Gadzuric, and probably Francisco Elson all back at center, it seems unlikely that the Bucks keep both, if either, of the incoming Spurs.

So, yes, you read that right. The Bucks have just dealt Richard Jefferson for three players that may not be on next season's roster. Why would they do such a thing?

First off, Jefferson provided little aside from scoring for the Bucks last season. The 29-year-old forward averaged 19.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.01 turnovers while shooting .439/.397/.805. His defense was uninspired most nights, and that's no way to get on Scott Skiles' good side. Fortunately for Jefferson's value, the Bucks lost Michael Redd and Bogut to injuries during the campaign, which required Jefferson to be on the floor for nearly 36 minutes per game.

The cost savings from this trade will allow the Bucks to more easily retain the 23-year-old Sessions and 24-year-old Villanueva, both of whom played very well last season for an otherwise struggling team. The move also paves the way for Joe Alexander, the eighth pick in last summer's draft. Alexander will now get to compete for a starting job after averaging only 12.1 minutes per game as a rookie. He will battle Luc Mbah a Moute, who hails from the same draft class, for the starting small forward spot. Mbah a Moute had the unquestionably better rookie season as his superb defense earned him more than twice as much playing time as Alexander.

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