Forward Chris Copeland, who was stabbed outside a New York City nightclub in April, reportedly has agreed to a contract with the Milwaukee Bucks.
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A source close to the negotiations, though, told the Journal Sentinel on Thursday evening that “nothing has been finalized”. In his first season with the Knicks and Pacers, the 6-foot-8 forward shot 42.1 percent and 41.8 percent from three-point land, respectively. Jared Dudley and Ersan Ilyasova were traded away during the off-season, which frees up a role off the bench that Copeland would presumably take.
He had to undergo surgery for the knife wounds sustained at his left elbow and abdomen.
Bleacher Report earlier reported the agreement between Copeland and Milwaukee. Short into his rookie campaign, Parker tore his ACL. If Parker has a setback or needs more time, Copeland represents a serviceable short-term replacement as a starter. After going undrafted out of the University of Colorado, Copeland spent six seasons working toward the National Basteball Association, playing in the National Basteball Association Development League as well as professional leagues in Spain, Germany and Belgium.
Copeland, 31, will be rejoining Jason Kidd after being together with the New York Knicks during the end of Kidd’s career. He made the most of the opportunity, knocking down 4 of 5 three-point attempts and scoring 18 points, including a runner with 1.2 seconds left that sent the Bucks to a 104-102 loss.
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Copeland gives the Bucks 15 players with guaranteed contracts, meaning Jorge Gutierrez and his unguaranteed deal probably gets squeezed out – though Milwaukee could eat the salary of someone like Damien Inglis or Johnny O’Bryant. The forward featured for the Indiana Pacers in 2014-15 season. While with the Pacers, he only averaged 6.5 minutes per game his first season but played in an average of 16.6 minutes per game a year ago.
