New Jersey Acquired Cadillac Anderson for Lester Conner
On January 16, 1991, New Jersey traded veteran guard Lester Conner to Milwaukee for forward-center Greg “Cadillac” Anderson, also known as Wayne Anderson. The transaction listings for both franchises agree on the two-player exchange. New Jersey needed additional interior strength and rebounding while Milwaukee had other veteran centers available and could use experienced perimeter defense. Neither club attached a future draft selection to the agreement. Both incoming players were NBA veterans rather than prospects awaiting an overseas signing, making this a short-term roster adjustment with modest costs. Conner had a guard’s defensive reputation after previous stops, while Anderson could supply rebounding and post defense when given minutes. This first transaction must be separated from New Jersey’s later three-team agreement completed only one week afterward.
The Nets Quickly Reused Anderson in a Much Larger Deal
On January 23, 1991, New Jersey sent Anderson out again in a three-team arrangement involving Portland and Denver. That complicated transaction helped the Nets acquire young guard Dražen Petrović and the rights to forward Terry Mills. This later use of Anderson gave the Nets a different kind of asset benefit from their original January 16 exchange: the acquired center was quickly convertible into a significant roster-building package. But Petrović was not received solely for Anderson, and his complete future statistics cannot be attributed to this single two-player transaction. The three-team deal included additional Nets and Nuggets assets, so a responsible assessment treats Anderson as one contributor among several later outgoing pieces. New Jersey’s C inherited grade recognizes that option value without pretending Anderson played a long Nets tenure.
Milwaukee Got an Available Defensive Guard
Conner joined a Bucks club that would finish 48-34 and reach the 1991 playoffs. He brought veteran ball-handling and perimeter defense to a group featuring strong frontcourt options and several experienced guards. A narrow bench role is a more realistic evaluation than claiming he displaced Milwaukee’s most important starters. The Bucks’ C grade reflects useful insurance for the remainder of the season, though the initial trade did not deliver a first-round choice or a high-scoring young guard. New Jersey’s eventual pursuit of Petrović was its decisive longer-term storyline, but Milwaukee received a veteran it could actually use immediately. The inherited Bucks Win verdict gives a narrow preference to Conner’s immediate guard utility, although the C grades are equal; Anderson’s subsequent asset path offers a different hindsight view. The exact week between the two deals helps explain why a seemingly unimportant exchange had a later consequence.
Final Verdict
Bucks Win under the inherited label, with equal C grades. Milwaukee received Lester Conner for veteran guard depth. New Jersey acquired Cadillac/Wayne Anderson, then included him in a separate January 23 three-team arrangement involving Dražen Petrović and Terry Mills; the larger return cannot be credited to Anderson alone.