The Milwaukee Bucks continue to look to add to their roster depth. On Tuesday evening it was being reported that the Milwaukee Bucks and Chris Copeland were on track to complete a deal by the end of the week, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com, but now it doesn't appear as though that is much of a lock.
On Wednesday morning reports surfaced that Copeland is not a guarantee to sign with the Bucks and that the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder are still in the mix, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports.
Copeland burst onto the scene in 2012-13 with the New York Knicks as an undrafted free agent for a very good team. Copeland was a little known player that attended the University of Colorado from 2002 until 2006. Copeland was never a great player in college, and because of that he went undrafted and it took him a while to even get a shot in the NBA.
Copeland played one season in the D-League in 2006-07 and was very good but it still didn't lead to an NBA chance. It wasn't until that season with the Knicks that Copeland got a chance, at age 28, and he took full advantage as he became a key player off the bench for the team. Copeland averaged 8.7 points in 15.4 minutes per game while shooting 48 percent from the field and 42 percent from three.
Copeland used that breakout year to get a contract with the Indiana Pacers, but things didn't go so well for him there. His first season in Indiana he barely played (6.5 minutes per game), and in his second season he had a down year. It is a bit of a mystery why Copeland never got more playing time with Indiana, as his career numbers per 36 minutes are outstanding (17.5 points, 4.8 rebounds).
Copeland is not a great defensive player, but he has a lot of offensive capability especially when it comes to shooting efficiently and making the three ball. Despite a down year last season in Indiana, Copeland's career shooting percentages, albeit in only three seasons, are very good, so the fact that there is a lot of interest in him shouldn't be a surprise. Copeland is now 31 years, old but he shoots the triple at a 37 percent clip and any team can use a guy like that who can also score in bunches. Based on the teams reportedly interested, it seems like Copeland's eventual contract will be for minimum salary, so he is certainly worth it for any of those three teams.
