The NBA has determined the Milwaukee Bucks violated tampering rules when speaking with Bogdan Bogdanovic, the league announced Monday.
As a result, the Bucks will forfeit their second-round pick in 2022.
"The league conducted an investigation into whether the Bucks had discussions with Bogdan Bogdanovic and/or his agent regarding a free-agent contract prior to the date when such discussions were permitted," the NBA said in its statement. "The investigation concluded that early discussions did in fact occur, constituting conduct detrimental to the NBA."
Bogdanovic was set to hit restricted free agency on Nov. 20 as a member of the Sacramento Kings, but reports first surfaced on Nov. 17 that the Bucks and Kings reached an agreement on a sign-and-trade, suggesting Milwaukee spoke to the Serbian too early.
The 28-year-old eventually signed a four-year, $72-million deal with the Atlanta Hawks. The NBA said it took into account the Bucks' failure to sign Bogdanovic when determining their penalty.
Milwaukee's 2022 selection is the next available second-rounder still owned by the team, ESPN's Tim Bontemps notes. The Bucks traded their 2021 second-round pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers to acquire George Hill.
