As expected, Khris Middleton has declined his player option for next season, entering free agency. He could return to the Bucks but the field is wide open.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski, Khris Middleton has declined his $40 million dollar option for next season. This makes him one of the top free agents. This was somewhat expected with the idea being that he would seek a longer deal at the age of 31.

Woj reported that the Bucks hope he will re-sign once free agency begins. This has been one of the under-reported storylines of the NBA season — especially with the way that the season ended for the Bucks, this is a team with a lot of questions. They could end up running it back with new head coach Adrian Griffin. Or several key players from their championship team could be departing, kicking off a new era.

If the Bucks end up signing Middleton back on a long-term deal, it will most likely be a situation where the team has to eat the last years on his deal due to declining play. This is a player that hasn't really recovered from an injury that he suffered two years ago.

Does this mean that Khris Middleton will be leaving the Bucks?

It would be shocking if the Bucks were to lose out to Middleton this offseason. For all of the talk about the Bucks' core aging out and them being on superstar trade watch, it seems like the Bucks will just run the course.

Houston will be a team to watch in negotiations and others will certainly be interested. Still, Middleton was involved in the Bucks' head coaching search. The Bucks do not have a lot of ways to improve this team via draft picks which makes a decision to not resign the veteran players not an option for the team if they want to keep the Greek Freak.

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