The Milwaukee Bucks have undergone some wholesale changes during the offseason and after trading away Brandon Jennings, they are working on keeping at least one of their young stars with the franchise in the future, as the team is working on an extension with Larry Sanders.
According to Pro Basketball Talk, the team is talking with Sanders about an extension after he has shown great improvements over the past couple seasons, emerging as a very solid defender and scorer. Sanders was excellent blocking shots last season and ranked second in the NBA with 2.8 per game and he also averaged 9.8 points and nine rebounds per game last season as well while being a top perimeter defender.
The team is rebuilding, but there is some hope for the future with names like Brandon Knight, O.J. Mayo, Gary Neal and Carlos Defino now in the fold after losing Jennings and Monta Ellis and coach Larry Drew feels that the roster has talent. ESPN.com is reporting that the team is nearing a deal for Sanders, as the end of October marks the deadline to give him and extension and this comes after John Wall already signed a very lucrative one.
Last season the Bucks leading shot blocker was not placed on the All-Defensive team and now he appears to be the most prominent player the Bucks have grown left on the roster. The team also lost JJ Redick in a trade as well as Mike Dunleavy and they also added Zaza Pachulia, who followed Drew from Atlanta to Milwaukee. The Bucks made it into the playoffs as the eighth seed last season and Sanders was one of the top players while averaging 9.8 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks in just 27.3 minutes per game last season.
