Joel Przybilla Signs Deal With Milwaukee Bucks
ESPN is reporting that former Portland Trail Blazers center Joel Przybilla has inked a deal to return to the first team he ever played for, the Milwaukee Bucks.
Przybilla’s arrival back in Milwaukee comes more than 12 years after the Bucks acquired him in a 2000 NBA Draft day trade with the Houston Rockets.
“The fans in Portland were great to me and my family,” Przybilla said. “I’m excited about this new chapter in my life.”
In addition to Przybilla, the Bucks also acquired center Samuel Dalembert through a trade with the Houston Rockets in June. Przybilla, a defense and rebounding specialist, is expected to provide a veteran backup presence for Dalembert.
“You can never have enough bigs,” Przybilla said, “especially with injuries. There may be games at the end of the year where you’re fighting for a playoff spot and you’re one rebound away.”
A 12-year veteran in the NBA, Przybilla has averaged 4.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks in 580 career games with Milwaukee, Atlanta, Portland, and Charlotte. In the 2011-2012 season, the 32-year-old averaged 2.0 points and 5.1 rebounds in 27 games.
News of Joel Pryzbilla’s Bucks signing was overshadowed by multiple reports that All-Star center Dwight Howard had been picked up by the Los Angeles Lakers in a complex 4-team deal.
Sports Illustrated lays out the details of the Dwight Howard trade below:
“The Lakers would get Howard, Orlando point guard Chris Duhon (two years, $6.5 million remaining) and Magic forward Earl Clark; Orlando would get Denver guard Arron Afflalo, Denver forward Al Harrington, Philadelphia small forward Moe Harkless, Philadelphia center Nikola Vucevic, three future first-round picks (one lottery-protected from the Sixers, the lower of Denver’s two first-rounders in 2014 and the Lakers’ 2017 first-rounder) and two second-round picks; Philadelphia would get Lakers center Andrew Bynum and Orlando guard Jason Richardson; and Denver would get Sixers forward Andre Iguodala. One source said Philadelphia was very reluctant to give up Harkless, the 15th pick in the June draft, and that Sixers officials continued looking for ways to avoid having to do so late Thursday.”
via ESPN
