The Golden State Warriors have acquired center Andrew Bogut and forward Stephen Jackson from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for guard Monta Ellis, forward Ekpe Udoh and center Kwame Brown, it was announced Tuesday night.
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Bogut, 27, was originally selected by the Bucks with the #1 overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft. He was a member of the NBA’s All-Rookie First Team in 2006 and was an All-NBA Third Team selection following the 2009-10 campaign, when he averaged a career-high 15.9 points, 10.2 rebounds and 2.54 blocked shots. A six-year NBA veteran (all with the Bucks), Bogut has appeared in 12 games this season with Milwaukee, averaging 11.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.00 blocked shots. He has missed the last 25 contests due to a fractured left ankle. Bogut, a native of Melbourne, Australia, has averaged a double-double (points/rebounds) in each of the last three NBA campaigns and is one of only three players to accomplish this feat, joining Dwight Howard and Zach Randolph. He led the NBA in blocked shots last season (2.59) while averaging a career-best 11.1 rebounds per game. The 7’0’’ center grabbed 20-plus rebounds on three occasions last season, highlighted by a career-best 27 on January 7 vs. Miami (second most in the NBA). Overall, he has averaged 12.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.60 blocked shots in 408 career NBA outings.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports: Bogut is a 27-year-old, 7-foot, 260-pounder who was the Bucks’ No. 1 pick in 2005. Bogut says he’s out for the regular season with a fractured left ankle, which he injured Jan. 25. The physical defensive presence appears to be a perfect fit next to Warriors power forward David Lee, who called Bogut his “toughest matchup in the league.” The Australian was the 2006 Rookie of the Year and was on the verge of stardom in 2010, when he averaged 15.9 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.6 blocked shots in a season shortened by a major elbow dislocation. Bogut was scheduled to make about $13.2 million next season and $14.2 million in 2013-14 before a 15 percent trade kicker. Stephen Jackson, who was the heart of the Warriors’ 2007 “We Believe” playoff team, will make about $10.1 million in next season’s final year of his contract – if the Warriors choose to keep him.
Jackson, 31, has appeared in 26 games with the Bucks this season, averaging 10.5 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.00 steals. An 11-year NBA veteran, Jackson has played for seven different NBA teams (New Jersey, San Antonio, Atlanta, Indiana, Golden State, Charlotte and Milwaukee) during his career, including a near three-year stint with the Warriors (2006-07 – 2009-10). The 6’8” forward was a member of Golden State’s playoff run in 2007, when the team became the first number-eight seed to defeat a number-one seed in a best-of-seven series (4-2 over the Dallas Mavericks). Overall, Jackson has appeared in 773 career NBA games, averaging 16.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports: The 6-8 Jackson arrived in a June 2011 trade but had problems from the start with the Bucks. He reported to training camp out of shape and eventually lost his place in the starting lineup, after oversleeping and missing a shoot-around Jan. 20 in New York. Jackson had not played the last nine games while seeking to be traded. He is owed $10 million for next season. This will be his second stint with the Warriors, a team he played with from 2007-’09.
“We’re extremely excited to acquire a player the caliber of Andrew Bogut, who we think is certainly one of the top centers in the NBA,” said General Manager Larry Riley. “He will add an element of toughness to our team and will provide us with scoring, rebounding and a defensive presence in the middle. We’ve lacked those elements in recent years and think that Andrew’s addition will be a key factor in the growth of our team. Stephen Jackson, meanwhile, enjoyed some of his best years in the NBA in the Bay Area and is a veteran who knows how to play on both ends of the floor. The difficult part of this transaction is having to part ways with several players who we really value and one, in particular, Monta Ellis, who has been instrumental in our organization for the last several years. We wish Monta, Ekpe and Kwame the best of luck in Milwaukee and thank them for their many contributions.”
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Currently in his seventh NBA season, Ellis (6-3, 185) has averaged 21.9 points, 3.4 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.5 steals in 37 games (all starts) for the Warriors this season. Last year in a career-best 80 starts, Ellis ranked 1st in in the NBA in minutes (40.3 mpg), 3rd in steals (2.1 spg), 8th in scoring (24.1 ppg) and 22nd in assists (5.6 apg) – leading the league in minutes played and finishing in the league’s top-10 in scoring (6th in 2009-10) and top-5 in steals (2nd in 2009-10) for the second consecutive season. He was one of only five players in the NBA to average at least 20.0 points and 5.0 assists (D. Rose, L. James, R. Westbrook, D. Williams) and his field goal percentage of 45.1 percent was tied for the second-best among any guard in the NBA’s top-20 in scoring, trailing only Dwyane Wade.
The Contra Costa Times reports: Ellis was putting them under increasing pressure by giving signs that he might start airing his long-held frustrations with the direction of the franchise. Ellis looked at the ownership-favored core of Stephen Curry, David Lee and Klay Thompson (Ellis’ replacement in the lineup) and decided he didn’t fit into the new political mix. And Ellis long ago tired of the Warriors’ promises that they were a move or two away from building a contending roster around him. Plus, Ellis had the hammer: He can opt out of his deal and become a free agent at the end of next season. That means the Warriors would have to start thinking about trading him … right about now.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports: Ellis has two years left on his contract totaling $22 million but he has an opt-out clause after next season. Bogut played in just 12 games this season before fracturing his left ankle in a game played in Houston on Jan. 25. It’s uncertain if he will be able to return this season. The 27-year-old Bogut was a third-team all-NBA selection after the 2009-’10 season, but he was injured near the end of that season when he suffered a massive fall to the Bradley Center floor after a dunk. He had surgery on his right hand and right elbow but still wasn’t healed fully at the start of last season. Bogut had another surgery on his right elbow in April 2011.
A Jackson, MS, native, Ellis, 26, was selected by Golden State with the 40th overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft out of Lanier High School (Jackson, MS). He had a breakout second NBA season (2006-07) when he averaged 16.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 4.1 assists and was named as the NBA’s Most Improved Player. He has averaged at least 19.0 points per game after his second NBA season and holds career totals of 19.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game, while shooting 46.5 percent from the field, 32.9 percent from the three-point line and 77.4 percent from the charity stripe in 413 NBA games.
Udoh, 24, is averaging 5.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game in his second season with the Warriors. The Big-12 Defensive Player of the Year and Honorable Mention AP All-American following his junior season at Baylor in 2009-10, Udoh (6-10, 245) was selected by Golden State with the sixth overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. He has appeared in 96 career games in the NBA (24 starts) and owns career averages of 4.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. Udoh has been in the starting lineup for Golden State in its last five outings, helping the Warriors to a 3-2 mark while averaging 10.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks over that span.
Brown, 30, owns the distinction as the first ever high school player to be selected with the top overall pick in the NBA Draft when Washington selected him with the No. 1 pick in 2001. An 11-year veteran in the league, Brown (6-11, 270) owns career averages of 6.8 points and 5.6 rebounds in 585 games split between Washington, the L.A. Lakers, Memphis, Detroit, Charlotte and Golden State. Brown’s best statistical season came during the 2003-04 campaign, when he posted 10.9 points and 7.4 rebounds for the Wizards. Signed by the Warriors as a free agent this offseason, Brown appeared in Golden State’s first nine games this season before suffering a torn pectoral muscle.
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