Milwaukee Bucks big man Greg Monroe plans to opt into the $17.88 million final year of his contract with the team, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical.
This move confirms that Moose will be betting on himself before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2018 and clearly demanding more for his services than the three-year $50 million contract he signed with the Bucks in 2015.
The 6-foot-11 forward had a Wednesday deadline to pick up his player option if he wished to do so. He expressed to new general manager Jon Horst a sincere desire to continue making strides toward Eastern Conference contention and remain with the team, according to league sources.
Monroe has been a well-liked figure in the Milwaukee locker room, despite coach Jason Kidd‘s constant indecision between keeping him as a starting center or a sixth man off the bench.
A natural back-to-the-basket power forward and one of the last in this NBA's dying breed, Monroe averaged 11.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 81 games for the Bucks in the 2016-17 season.
He put up 13.2 points and 7.3 rebounds in 23.5 minutes per game in the team's first-round series loss to the Toronto Raptors, while causing a speed mismatch against center Jonas Valanciunas.
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