Milwaukee Bucks center Greg Monroe (R) tries to drive past Miami Heat's Hassan Whiteside. (Photo : Getty Images)
The Milwaukee Bucks are reportedly set to aggressively shop starting center Greg Monroe this summer as the five-year pro has not found himself to be an ideal fit with the team's system in his first year with them last season.
Milwaukee had high hopes for the squad when they got the 26-year-old big man in free-agency last summer. The Bucks beat more illustrious franchises, such as the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks, for the former Georgetown standout's signature.
Putting him alongside young stars Giannis Antetokounmpo, Michael Carter-Williams, Jabari Parker, and Khris Middleton gave Milwaukee fans an expectation that they can be a perennial playoffs contender for years.
However, that did not happen.
Monroe had averaged 15.3 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 0.8 blocks in 29.3 minutes per game - his standard career averages - during his inaugural season with the Bucks. Yet, the team still failed to replicate their 41-41 regular season in 2014-2015 that made them advance to the postseason. In 2015-2016, they finished 33-49 (12th in the East) and did not qualify for the playoffs.
Fansided reported that Milwaukee seems to be "ready to admit mistake" as "Monroe really never looked like he fit in with the Bucks this past season".
One major weakness in Monroe's game is his mediocre defense, which made him look "out of place" with the Bucks' young guns every time he steps with them on the court. His "limited defensive ability" made the squad post the 23rd-best per-possession defensive mark in the NBA last season after they finished fourth in the previous season without him around, according to Today's Fastbreak.
Monroe is just entering the second year of his three-year, $51.4 million deal with Milwaukee that owes him $17.1 million this coming season and $17.8 million in the season after that. It remains to be seen which team would be willing to accept his salary at least for 2016-2017 as he has a player option at the end of next season and so he can choose to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
Another thing is the league's penchant for playing small ball and shying away from low-post scorers, which is Monroe's bread-and-butter attribute.
Monroe can still be valuable to any team he ends up with as his numbers never went down. He just does not fit well in what head coach Jason Kidd is trying to do in Milwaukee and so expect either the Lakers or Knicks to try and pursue him again this offseason.
