On Tuesday, reports leaked that Milwaukee and Sacramento had agreed to a sign-and-trade deal that would send Bogdan Bogdanovic to the Bucks for Ersan Ilyasova, Donte DiVincenzo, and D.J. Wilson.
Except, teams are not permitted to talk to free agents until the free agency window opens Friday at 6 p.m. Eastern. Meaning the Bucks can’t talk to Bogdanovic, which means they can’t really set up a sign-and-trade like this until Friday. The buzz around the league is that the trade fell apart because the league came down on the Bucks and Kings for agreeing to a trade three days before the free agency window opened.
Now comes word that the league is investigating the proposed trade, reports Marc Stein of the New York Times.
The NBA has opened an investigation of the reported transaction involving Milwaukee and Sacramento that was to send Bogdan Bogdanovic to the Bucks via sign-and-trade after Friday's scheduled start of free agency, @NYTSports has learned
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) November 20, 2020
Milwaukee on Thursday waived Ersan Ilyasova -- whose inclusion in the initial trade scenario was believed to be central to making it happen -- and that has increased belief leaguewide that Bogdanovic will be headed elsewhere in free agency ... which commences Friday at 6 PM ET
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) November 20, 2020
That investigation could lead to a hefty fine for Milwaukee (they are the ones that technically tampered, the Kings can talk to their own free agent). Of course, what really matters in Milwaukee is what Giannis Antetokounmpo thinks.
Unclear, of course, is how all this lands with Giannis Antetokounmpo. There was great optimism late Monday and into Tuesday in Milwaukee that the apparent infusion of Jrue Holiday and Bogdan Bogdanovic would satisfy management's postseason pledge to Giannis to improve the roster
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) November 20, 2020
Tampering runs rampant through the NBA — and seems more intense this year because of the condensed offseason — but it’s generally done through back channels or in more subtle ways that don’t end up getting reported out to the public. That could fall more on Bogdanovic’s agent — the same one who agreed to a deal with the Spurs for Marcus Morris a couple of years ago, then backed out, costing San Antonio Davis Bertans — than the Bucks.
This all still feels backward. The point of tampering rules is to level the playing field and keep big markets or owners willing to spend money from poaching superstars from smaller markets. In this case, the small market working hard to keep its two-time MVP in Antetokounmpo is the one getting punished. Is that how the system is supposed to work?