The Milwaukee Bucks They made multiple trades last season in an attempt to return to the NBA Finals after a first-round loss to the Miami Heat last season. Of course, the biggest of these moves was firing Mike Budenholzer and trading Jrue Holiday and Grayson Allen for All-Star point guard Damian Lillard. To replace Budenholzer, who led the Bucks to their first NBA championship in 50 years, Milwaukee hired head coach Adrian Griffin.
Unfortunately, none of these moves worked immediately. Griffin was fired midway through the season, even though the Bucks were 30-13 at the time. Doc Rivers was brought in to replace him, and he finished the season 16-19 on top (Giannis Antetokounmpo, Lillard and Khris Middleton were hearty for the entire six games).
Lillard and Giannis did not have full free time to practice together, and the lack of fluidity on the court was evident. A full offseason knowing they will be on the same team will do wonders for their production next year.
However, there were several other, lesser-known trades that didn’t work out the way the Bucks expected.
Cameron Payne was one of several failed free agent signings for the Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks made a number of veteran free agent signings last offseason. They re-signed forward Jae Crowder, who played minimal minutes under Budenholzer despite being selected with five picks in the second round of the NBA Draft.
Milwaukee also signed shooting guard Malik Beasley, who had a very good season offensively, but was so indigent defensively that he was often taken out of the game due to his defensive possession.
The Bucks also signed point guard Cameron Payne, whom they faced in the 2021 NBA Finals when he was with the Phoenix Suns. At the time, his signing was highly praised by fans and the media as he considered himself a reliable player off the bench.
However, like Beasley, Payne was a liability on defense. Despite shooting nearly 40% from three, the Bucks traded him at the deadline for Patrick Beverley.
Former Milwaukee Bucks point guard Cameron Payne was arrested on Friday
After being traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, Payne saw his playing time raise and, as a result, his production. He improved from averaging 6.2 points for Milwaukee to 9.3 for Philadelphia. He still shot about 40% from three.
Now a free agent, many 76ers fans want Payne back. But even if he is re-signed, he could face some suspension after news broke on Friday that he had been arrested in Phoenix.
According to TMZ, Scottsdale police responded to a call where they contacted Payne and another person. There are no details on what happened before the call, but “Payne was arrested at the scene and booked with one count of refusing to provide his real name and one count of false reporting to law enforcement.”
Apparently Payne refused to tell police his real name and gave a false statement to authorities.
He was released from custody shortly afterwards. No other information is known at this time.
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