• Things in the league have been relatively quiet on the trade front this preseason, but the Milwaukee Bucks have been randomly active in trades that look to shape their identity going forward. While they haven’t traded what many believe to be their best trade chip, center Greg Monroe, the Bucks completely cleared their point guard rotation to fully get behind the Giannis Antetokounmpo at point guard experiment.

    Through those lenses, shipping shooting deficient guard Michael Carter-Williams to Chicago for Tony Snell makes perfect sense. That move, coupled with the decision to ship Tyler Ennis out of town for Michael Beasley rids the Bucks of nearly all their point guards, clearing the way for Giannis to have the ball undeterred, especially with bench units while starting point guard Matthew Dellavedova rests. Rookie Malcolm Brogdon played point for their summer league team, but it appears he’ll be slotted off ball this year alongside uneven second-year guard Rashad Vaughn.

    In Snell, they gain another player, like Dellavedova, who took catch and shoot three pointers for nearly half his shots last season. In fact, Snell, a slightly above league average 36% three-pointer shooter last season, took 139 of his 155 three pointers last year without dribbling once. In a bit of an oddity for what basically amounts to a specialty player, only 23% of those shots came from the corners, with Snell doing most of his damage from the longer three-pointers on the wings shooting over 60% of his threes from the left and right angles. Snell also shot the longer, wing threes at a better percentage, hitting at a 41% clip from there while shooting just 30% from the corners. Contrast that with Dellavedova’s 51% mark from the corners last year vs. his 37% from the wings and you get a feel of just where they fit next to each other around Giannis dribble drives. As catch and shoot specialist they both bring value as screeners in Giannis pick and pops as well, forcing defenses to scramble and smaller defenders to try and deter Giannis’ long strides into the paint.

    The noise coming from the Bucks is that Snell will start at shooting guard on opening night next to Dellavedova and Antetokounmpo, in theory surrounding Giannis with capable shooters on the perimeter. The catch and shoot dynamic is an added plus since, according to sources within the organization, Giannis was accused privately of “Rondo-ing” his much ballyhooed about assists numbers late last season, only passing the ball when an assist or catch and shoot opportunity was available. He also picked up a fair share of his assists during fast breaks, waiting long into the break to decide whether he’d shoot or not, again, a tactic that almost ensured him either points or an assist on any given possession.

    With Snell the Bucks also acquire another lengthy and rangy defender for what they envision as a fast and wingspan-laden defense hungry to create turnovers. This is the main reason Monroe is available and will come off the bench this season. At 6’7, Snell actually is a downsizing from injured Khris Middleton, and will provide help for Jabari Parker. It’s Parker who remains the lone minus defender in the Bucks projected starting lineup, though he posses the athleticism to be effective on that side of the court. If he adds the attention to detail required to improve as a defender, a leap for Parker on the defensive end could be the anthesis of a leap into the top half of the playoff bracket in the Eastern Conference.

    As for the Bulls, well that’s where things aren’t so clear. In acquiring another minus shooter for a roster full of them, but have at least sured up the backup point guard spot that was a question mark with unproven, second-year guards Spencer Dinwiddie or Jerian Grant failing to impress. Still, removing the slightly-above-average shooter Snell from the roster leaves the Bulls with proven shooter Doug McDermott and streaky Nikola Mirotic as the only semblance of shooting left on the team. It’s likely neither will start, which leaves a starting unit that will heavily rely on pick and rolls that teams will simply sag off of, and inefficient post ups that drain clock and can be doubled often.

    Still, Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler will squeeze points out of that less than ideal setup, and Rajon Rondo will hemorrhage assists anywhere with his ball dominant, pass only when necessary style. Whether it’s enough to be an average offense remains to be seen, and Carter-Williams fit seems jagged at best. He should have success in second units with McDermott and Mirotic on the floor, but presents the same pick and roll deficiencies as Rondo. There’s no reason to jump out and hedge the ball handler or even switch, when you can just sag back and take away the drive and the pass to the roller, just daring MCW to shoot.

    The front office decisions have clashed with Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg’s desire for an uptempo offense like the one he ran during his five-year stint as head coach at Iowa State. Last season he clashed with players, namely Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah, and failed to ever truly implement the offensive system he’d hoped to carry with him to the NBA. Now, Rose and Noah are in New York but the front office has saddled him with an even slower and more shooting-deficient team than before. Rondo did lead the team with the fastest pace in the league last year, but he prefers to pound the ball in the half-court in search of assists. Wade is even slower than him and likes to pound the ball as well, searching for space in the mid-range area and posting up smaller guards. Plus, any team giving significant minutes to Robin Lopez is going to lumbering.

    It’s not losing Snell that hurts the Bulls so much. He started 33 games last year but played less minutes than McDermott, failing to seize the starting small forward position after it was basically handed to him with Mike Dunleavey’s back injury. It only took five games for Snell to lose his starting spot to McDermott, and for stretches of the season he was out of the rotation entirely. It’s losing Snell and not getting any offensive punch back for him that hurts, and runs counter to what Hoiberg envisions for this team that makes the move puzzling at best.

    So, as the Bucks intentions for this season become clearer, the Bulls identity becomes even murkier. These two teams just 90 miles apart alongside Lake Michigan appear to be headed in different directions, and with the move this week they’re helping each other along the way, both good and bad.

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