Former Raptors Guard Inks Contract With Eastern Conference Contenders

Former Toronto Raptors guard Gary Trent Jr. has inked a one-year deal with the Milwaukee Bucks for next season

Jan 17, 2023; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Toronto Raptors guard Gary Trent Jr. (33) drives for the basket against Milwaukee Bucks guard George Hill (3) during the fourth quarter at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports / Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Gary Trent Jr. is joining the Milwaukee Bucks.

The former Toronto Raptors guard has reportedly inked a one-year deal to reunite with Damian Lillard, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Free agent G Gary Trent Jr. has agreed on a one-year deal with the Milwaukee Bucks, Rich Paul and Lucas Newton of @klutchsports tell ESPN. Trent reunites with Damian Lillard and joins a Bucks organization that recruited him hard to chase a title with them. pic.twitter.com/jXmQuCcRMx

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 16, 2024

Trent leaves Toronto following 3.5 seasons with the organization. The Raptors acquired him at the 2021 trade deadline in a deal with the Portland Trail Blazers for Norman Powell.

The 25-year-old picked up his player option worth $18.7 million for this past season hoping there'd be a market for him this offseason. In hindsight, the decision proved costly for Trent who saw his numbers dip, averaging just 13.7 points per game, the lowest since his sophomore season.

Toronto reportedly had internal conversations about re-signing Trent to a deal worth as much as $15 million, per Sportsnet's Michael Grange. The organization never officially offered Trent that deal and opted instead to replace the sharpshooting guard with Ja'Kobe Walter in the draft.

The terms of Trent's deal have yet to be announced, but Milwaukee is into the second apron and is unable to sign free agents for anything more than the veteran minimum worth roughly $2.8 million.

The hope for Trent will be one standout season with the Bucks next year will allow him to reset his market for the summer of 2025.

Trent leaves the Raptors as the second most tenured player for the organization, being only Chris Boucher. He averaged 16.4 points, 1.7 assists, and 1.4 steals per game with Toronto but was never able to develop into the kind of defensive two-way player the organization had hoped he'd become.