Milwaukee Bucks swingman Khris Middleton is closing in on a five-year, $70 million deal with the team, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.
Middleton, 23, is a restricted free agent, but re-signing him to a long-term deal has been Milwaukee’s number one priority since the season ended.
In his third season, Middleton showed great improvements, averaging 13.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.5 steals. He averaged over 17 points per game in the final two months of the season.
Middleton was the 39th overall pick by the Detroit Pistons in 2012 and was traded to the Bucks as part of the Brandon Knight/Brandon Jennings swap. He earned 58 starts out of 79 games played this past season, as he thrived under head coach Jason Kidd.
Once Middleton officially agrees to the deal, this will go down as a great move for the Bucks considering that many people expected Middleton to get a maximum contract this summer.
Middleton cannot officially sign with the team until July 9 when the free-agent moratorium period ends.
Up next on the Bucks’ priority list is to bring in a solid big man. Robin Lopez, Tyson Chandler, and Enes Kanter are a few players Milwaukee is interested in.