Milwaukee Bucks close deal with veterans Delon Wright and Taurean Prince

One of the frustrations Lakers fans had with Darvin Ham last season was how much he relied on Taurean Prince (the Lakers were outscored by 2.7 points per 100 possessions when Prince was on the court, yet Ham continued to use him as a starter for 49 games and played more minutes). Now Ham is gone, heading back to Milwaukee as an assistant on Doc Rivers’ staff.

Prince is joining him: the veteran forward has agreed to a contract with the Bucks, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Milwaukee has had a quiet offseason so far, but has made a pair of deals in the past 24 hours, including veteran winger Delon Wright, who spent last season in Miami.

Both are minimum deals for veterans, because that’s what Milwaukee has to offer.

While Lakers fans may laugh at Prince, this is actually a great addition for the Bucks — at the very least, and in a 20-minute-a-night role off the bench, Prince is a fantastic addition. He averaged 8.9 points per game for the Lakers last season while shooting 39.6% from 3 (part of the reason Ham stuck with him; Los Angeles needed the floor space).

Wright is the same. He’s a solid rotational combo guard who shot 36.8% from 3 last season and is a quality defender known for his ability to block passes. Where Wright fits into the rotation remains to be seen, but he could see clutch minutes against other teams’ elite guards — on the ball with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez protecting the paint could work well.

Milwaukee hasn’t made much of an impression, but the bet is that the second year of the Antetokounmpo-Damian Lillard partnership, with just one experienced coach from the start and (hopefully) good health, can get them back to the upper echelons of the East. To get there, they need solid role players, and the Prince-Wright combination could be that.