Milwaukee Bucks sign Greg Monroe, re-sign Khris Middleton

MILWAUKEE -- The Milwaukee Bucks signed free agent center/forward Greg Monroe, General Manager John Hammond announced Thursday, July 9th.They also re-signed restricted free agent forward Khris Middleton.

“The entire Bucks organization is thrilled to welcome Greg to Milwaukee,” Bucks General Manager John Hammond said. “Greg will be a fantastic complement to the talented young roster we’re assembling. The fact that he chose Milwaukee speaks volumes about the culture we’re developing and the bright future we envision for the Bucks.”

“Khris played a huge role in our turnaround last season and has become a leader on our young team,” Bucks General Manager John Hammond said. “Keeping Khris in a Bucks uniform was a huge priority for us this offseason, and we’re thrilled that he’ll continue to grow with our young core as we work towards building a championship-caliber team in Wisconsin.”

Monroe, 25, was selected by the Pistons with the seventh-overall pick of the 2010 NBA Draft and has spent the last five seasons with Detroit. In 2014-15, he averaged a double-double for the first time in his career with 15.9 points and 10.2 rebounds, along with 2.1 assists. Monroe was one of only 12 players in the NBA last season to average a points/rebounds double-double, and his 10.2 rebounds per game tied for eighth in the league. On Feb. 6 vs. Denver, Monroe recorded his first career 20-point/20-rebound game with 21 points and a career-high 21 rebounds.

In each of the last four seasons Monroe has recorded at least 1,000 points and 600 rebounds, making him one of just two NBA players (DeMarcus Cousins) to accomplish that feat. In his career, Monroe has notched 158 double-doubles, which is 10th-most among all NBA players during that time span. The 6-foot-11-inch center/forward has career averages of 14.3 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists over 378 games (334 starts).

Monroe was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 2011. He played at Georgetown for two years from 2008 through 2010 and earned NCAA AP All-America Third Team and First Team All-Big East honors after his sophomore season in 2010. As a high school senior at Helen Cox (Louisiana) in 2008, he was named a McDonald’s All American. Monroe will wear No. 15 for the Bucks.

Middleton, 23, has spent the last two seasons in Milwaukee after being acquired through a trade with Detroit in July of 2013, the summer after his rookie year. In a breakout season with the Bucks in 2014-15, Middleton posted career highs in points per game (13.4), rebounds per game (4.4) and assists per game (2.3). He tied for ninth in the NBA for steals per turnover ratio (122:113, 1.08), and his 3-point percentage of 40.7 tied for 10th in the league. Middleton became the first player to have multiple game-winning 3-pointers in the same season (at Phoenix on Dec. 15 and vs. Miami on March 24) since Kobe Bryant in 2009-10. He posted a career-high 30 points two times last season out of 59 total double-digit scoring games. Middleton saw his first playoff action in 2015 and led the Bucks in scoring in the postseason with 15.8 points through the six games (all starts).

The six-foot-nine-inch forward out of Texas A&M was selected 39th overall by the Pistons in the 2012 NBA Draft. Middleton owns career averages of 11.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists. He has a career field goal percentage of 45.3 and 3-point percentage of 40.3. His 3-point percentage through two seasons with Milwaukee, 41.0, ranks third on the Bucks’ all-time list.