Whither Gadzuric?

Did you catch GM Larry Harris' comments to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel yesterday? He said the Bucks need to add depth at the 1, 3, and 5 positions. If I was reserve center Dan Gadzuric reading those comments while eating breakfast I think my reaction might have been.."uhhh, I play the 5".

I have laid out my position on Gadzuric in the past. In a nutshell: I realize he's not a superstar, that he couldn't throw a jumper in the ocean from the pier, that the only shot he executes well is the dunkshot, and that he is highly dependent on his teammates to produce points (87% of his baskets are assisted).

But in this NBA he is a big man who produces numbers, and that makes him a more than serviceable center. Plus he is energetic and pretty athletic. In fact, he runs the floor exceptionally well for a 5. He is about the only one on the roster who blocks shots (though his defense on the ball pretty weak), and he's a more than adequate rebounder.

Yet despite all that, his minutes were sharply curtailed from 44% in 2004-05 to 17% last season. Then he was completely forgotten in the postseason, and now it seems he doesn't fit Harris' plans for the future. What's really puzzling is that all this happened to Gadzuric after the Bucks signed him to a fairly lucrative six year contract.

If the Bucks are going to let him waste on the vine, I wish they would at least say why. Why is he suddenly of no use to the Bucks, and if he is of no use why did they pay him 6 million dollars to ride pine?