Milwaukee Bucks: C

If the Bucks had decided they weren't willing to pay Brogdon the market rate as a restricted free agent, there's no doubt a sign-and-trade was the way to go. Milwaukee gets a first-round pick to help replace the two future first-rounders the team is already out due to past trades -- one that's almost certain to convey in 2020 from the Eric Bledsoe deal, plus a top-10 protected pick two years after that sent out in last year's money-saving trade for George Hill.

Beyond that, the Bucks will also create a trade exception worth half of Brogdon's 2019-20 salary by trading him without getting anything in return. (The trade exception will be worth only half his salary, rather than the full amount, because of base-year compensation rules.) That's important because Milwaukee won't create much cap space by trading Brogdon after committing to a four-year, $52 million deal to re-sign center Brook Lopez using space. The most starting salary the Bucks can offer a free agent is their $4.8 million room midlevel exception. So the trade exception will offer them more spending power to utilize at some point in the next year.

Still, at this price, I think I'd have been inclined to just match and keep Brogdon. As long as Brogdon can stay healthy -- and the broken bone in his left foot that sidelined him an entire season at Virginia apparently remains a serious concern -- he should be reasonably paid at this price given his combination of shooting, playmaking and defense are so tough to replace.

Milwaukee isn't going to find anyone with a trade exception or the room midlevel exception nearly as good as Brogdon, and now is the time to pay the luxury tax with a team capable of winning a championship and Giannis Antetokounmpo a year away from deciding whether he wants to commit to staying long-term on a supermax extension.

To me, without knowledge of Brogdon's medical records, the risk of the Bucks failing to maximize their championship window and giving Giannis a reason to leave is greater than the risk of overpaying here.

Indiana Pacers: C

Conversely, I'm not sure I love this deal for the Pacers, either, even if I much prefer Brogdon as a fit next to shooting guard Victor Oladipo than long-rumored Indiana target Ricky Rubio. The Pacers are basically paying twice here -- both in enough salary to beat out other suitors for Brogdon and in giving up the first-round pick to ensure the Bucks didn't match their offer.

From a rational standpoint, the value of a first-round pick is that rookie-scale contracts mean first-rounders are typically underpaid, so to be worth giving one up in return, a player should be underpaid, as well. I think that's unlikely for Brogdon at $20-plus million over the next four years, which will take him through age 30.

While that was worth it for Milwaukee given how close the team is to a championship, Indiana isn't quite at that level of contention. As a result, I probably would have been content waiting out a surprisingly frenzied market for point guards.