The Bucks are likely to match any offers that restricted free agent Khris Middleton receives during the offseason, according to Gery Woelfel of the Journal Times. One NBA assistant general manager tells Woelfel that he estimates Middleton will receive a multi-year contract that averages around $7MM per year, while another NBA source predicts the 23-year-old will earn $8MM per year.
Those figures would be a dramatic raise over his current league minimum salary, which is slightly more the $915K. The forward has played well for the Bucks this season, averaging 12.9 points per game while shooting 43.8% from behind the arc. Middleton has expressed his desire to remain in town long-term. “I definitely want to stay here,’’ Middleton said. “We got a nice team, a good organization, a great city to play in. I want to be here in the future.’’
Woelfel notes that Middleton is represented by Jeff Schwartz, who is a friend of Bucks owner Marc Lasry. Schwartz also represents coach Jason Kidd as well as several other Bucks players. The forward arrived in Milwaukee during the 2013 offseason as part of a package that sent Brandon Jennings to Detroit. The Bucks also received Viacheslav Kravtsov as well as Brandon Knight, who, at the time, was considered the main prize of the deal. Middleton, who was perceived as merely a throw-in, is the only member of the trade remaining on the team’s roster.