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Bucks add another key shooter as Kyle Korver agrees to one-year deal

Reigning NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo will have an extra shooter for his next playoff run, as the Milwaukee Bucks agreed to a one-year deal with sharpshooter Kyle Korver.

The Bucks were already favored to win the East, and adding another elite shooter is key to their strategy of surrounding Giannis Antetokounmpo with four shooters. With the departures of Malcolm Brogdon and Nikola Mirotic, they were on the market for more wings.

Korver is one of the top three-point shooters of the millennium with a career 42.9 percent mark from beyond the arc. And although he's played fewer than 30 minutes per game each of the last three seasons, he's still been able to put up more than five triples per game.

While nearly every contending team could use an extra shooter, Korver was reportedly choosing between the Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers, who are looking to replace JJ Redick. According to Wojnarowski, his relationship with head coach Mike Budenholzer, whom he played for on the Atlanta Hawks for parts of four seasons, was a key part of his decision.

A busy offseason comes to an end for Korver

Nearly every contending team wanting Korver also means that he’s been on the move quite a bit lately. Technically, the Bucks will be his fourth franchise in the last two weeks and his sixth in two and a half years.

Korver was traded from Budenholzer’s Hawks, where he was an All-Star in 2015, to the Cleveland Cavaliers in January 2017. He stayed with them until last November, when they dealt him back to the Utah Jazz.

Korver then became salary filler when the Jazz traded for Memphis point guard Mike Conley Jr., and the Grizzlies flipped him one day later to the Phoenix Suns for former No. 4 overall pick Josh Jackson.

Given Korver’s reticence to play on a rebuilding team, the Suns waived him and let him choose his next home.

Detroit Pistons guard Luke Kennard, right, defends against Utah Jazz guard Kyle Korver (26) during the second half of an NBA basketball game Monday,Jan. 14 , 2019, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Shooting guard Kyle Korver will reunite with his former Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

Could Korver break any more records?

Father time has yet to catch up to Korver’s shot, so there’s no telling how much longer he will keep suiting up. However, since his value comes from shooting, further deterioration on defense should not matter much, giving him a shot to continue moving up the record books.

Korver sits fourth all-time with 2,351 three-pointers made. He actually started last season in the same place and passed Jason Terry to briefly hold third, but Stephen Curry leapfrogged him about a week later.

Topping Ray Allen's record of 2,973 is likely out of the question, but Korver would have a shot at passing Reggie Miller's 2,560 mark. Korver has only eclipsed the 206 three-pointers mark he'd need to tie Miller this year twice in his career, so that's unlikely to happen in 2019-20, but he would have a very strong chance if he plays one additional season.

Of course, given the proliferation of the three-point shot, Korver won’t stay in the top five for long. Any additional threes are great to pad his resume until the day that James Harden, Klay Thompson and Damian Lillard blister past him.

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