The Milwaukee Bucks agreed to trade Richard Jefferson to the San Antonio Spurs for Bruce Bowen, Kurt Thomas and Fabricio Oberto, a Bucks source told ESPN.com.
The two teams have agreed to the deal in principle. A trade call to make the deal official will happen later Tuesday.
The move gives the Spurs a dynamic wing scorer to play alongside Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. The Spurs had promised to make their team better this summer and adding Jefferson for role players should give them a huge shot in the arm.
The Bucks' incentive to make the trade is largely financial. Bowen, Oberto and Thomas are all in the last year of their contracts. The deal will clear $15 million off the books for the Bucks next season and give Milwaukee more flexibility for next year. The Bucks expect to save $6.35 million next season after releasing Bowen (only $2 million guaranteed) and Oberto (only $1.9 million guaranteed), a source told ESPN.com.
That may give the Bucks the wiggle room to sign one or both of their restricted free agents -- Charlie Villanueva or Ramon Sessions -- next year.
The move also opens up some playing time for the Bucks' lottery pick last year, Joe Alexander.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4281291
