Henson says he and Bucks nearing agreement on contract extension
The Milwaukee Bucks enjoyed a productive summer, following an upstart season by inking swingman Khris Middleton to a four-year contract extension and shoring up their frontcourt with the signing of free-agent big man Greg Monroe.
One piece of offseason business, though, has notably been left unattended to. Back in mid-July, the Bucks and center John Henson were said to be progressing toward an extension. In the six-odd weeks since, no extension has materialized, and there's been radio silence from both sides regarding the status of negotiations.
According to Henson, nothing has changed since those initial reports, and despite the apparent holdup, he feels the two sides are still on track to complete a deal before the Nov. 2 deadline for extensions.
"We're close," Henson said at Bucks Media Day on Monday, according to Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times. "We're just trying to work out some details. It's a process; we'll see what happens. But I definitely want to be here for a long time."
In his third NBA season, the bouncy, 6-foot-11, ultra-long Henson saw many of his raw numbers take a dip. He averaged seven points and 4.7 rebounds, down from 11.1 and 7.1 the year prior. But he also made great strides as a rim protector and help defender, nearly doubling his block rate (he led the team with two per game, in just 18.3 minutes) and buoying the Bucks' second-ranked defense.
Having Monroe in the fold could make minutes tougher to come by for Henson - especially with sophomore Jabari Parker returning from an ACL injury and expected to assume the starting power forward role - and thus depress his value, at least where the Bucks are concerned. But when asked about the signing, Henson was upbeat and optimistic.
"When I heard he was coming here, I was happy, man," Henson said. "He's going to make us a better team incrementally. One of the things we were missing was having a guy to go to inside, and he's that guy."
Monroe excels as an interior scorer, and doesn't possess the range that might make him an ideal frontcourt fit with a close-to-the-basket center like Henson (the Detroit Pistons notably struggled trying to pair Monroe with Andre Drummond). Still, Henson feels the Bucks, and head coach Jason Kidd, can find a way to make it work.
"I think me and Greg will be great together against those (taller) teams," he said, referring to the Chicago Bulls team that knocked Milwaukee out in the first round of last year's playoffs. "And when teams go small, we've got Jabari and we got Giannis (Antetokounmpo).
"We can do so many things, so it's going to be fun. It'll be interesting to see how coach integrates everybody."