Free agent forward Joe Ingles has agreed to a one-year contract with the Bucks worth $6.5M, agent Mark Bartelstein tells Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Ingles’ wife Renae first broke the news on Twitter.
The Bucks have also agreed to bring back a pair of their own free agents, agreeing to a one-year deal with swingman Wesley Matthews and a two-year pact with guard Jevon Carter, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The $6.5M salary for Ingles indicates he’ll be getting the team’s taxpayer mid-level exception. Carter’s deal will be worth $4.6M over two years, with a player option on Year 2, tweets Scotto. That figure suggests Carter may be getting slightly above the veteran’s minimum using his Non-Bird rights.
It’s a somewhat surprising use of Milwaukee’s taxpayer mid-level exception, given that Ingles just underwent surgery on a torn ACL in February. The 34-year-old seems extremely unlikely to be ready to go by the fall and may not get back on the court until 2023. If and when he’s healthy though, he’ll be a nice fit for a Bucks team that could use his ball-handling, shooting, and defensive versatility.
As for Matthews and Carter, they played modest reserve roles for the Bucks in 2021-22, but should be useful depth pieces. Matthews, in particular, had a strong playoff run, starting all 12 of the Bucks’ postseason contests and making 40% of his 3s.
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