Former All-Star Milwaukee Bucks small forward Khris Middleton — who has struggled with various lower-body health issues for much of the last two seasons — continues to recuperate from offseason surgeries on both of his ankles.
Sources tell NBA insider Chris Haynes that the 6-foot-7 swingman out of Texas A&M has yet to be permitted to suit up for five-on-five play with his comrades. Bucks training camp is slated to tip off on Oct. 1.
“He’s progressing nicely, but team is taking a cautious approach as he’s expected to take part in most of camp activities,” Haynes writes, suggesting that Middleton will at least be healthy enough to suit up for some portion of camp.
Read more: Milwaukee Bucks Star Had Surgery on Both Ankles This Offseason
Across the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, Middleton appeared in just 88 of 164 total bouts, averaging 15.1 on a fairly efficient slash line of .471/.355/.865 shooting splits, 5.2 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 0.8 steals a night. That’s a steep decline from his peak era with the Bucks.
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From 2018-2022, Middleton missed an average of just 5.2 games, while notching 19.9 points on .464/.386/.884 shooting splits, 5.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.1 steals a night. Behind two-time league MVP power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, Middleton was the second- or third-best player on Milwaukee’s 2021 title team, alongside fellow multi-time All-Star Jrue Holiday.
After the top-seeded Bucks got eliminated in the first round of the 2023 playoffs by the Finals-bound Miami Heat, Milwaukee took drastic measures that summer. The team fired longtime head coach Mike Budenholzer and traded Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers for All-Star point guard Damian Lillard. The Bucks also inked starting center Brook Lopez and Middleton to long-term extensions, a generous move considering both players’ age (Lopez at the time was 35, Middleton was 32) and lengthy injury history.
Last year’s Bucks finished with a good-not-great 49-33 record in 2023-24, good for the third overall seed in the Eastern Conference. But Milwaukee was eliminated in the first round for a second straight season, this time by the Indiana Pacers, after Antetokounmpo was felled by injuries for a second straight season, and Lillard missed a pair of games with ailments of his own.
Middleton, to his credit, looked better than he had all year in that six-game series. Averaging 38.3 minutes a night, he notched 24.7 points on .482/.355/.900 shooting splits (while taking a robust 5.2 triple tries a night), 9.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 0.5 swipes a night.
Though the Bucks had contemplated flipping Lopez, now 36, this summer, the team ultimately backed down.
Read more: Bucks Make Crucial Decision on Center Brook Lopez Entering NBA Season
Milwaukee had likely been counting on the former two-way standout to clean up the spotty perimeter defense of its projected starting backcourt. In a nice bit of business, the Bucks inked free agent veteran shooting guard Gary Trent Jr. to a veteran’s minimum deal this summer to join an aging Lillard, returning for his second year with the franchise. Neither Trent nor Lillard is much of a stopper, and Middleton seems to have lost a step — when he can even play at all.
When healthy, Milwaukee’s starting five of Lillard, Trent, Middleton, Antetokounmpo, and Lopez is among the best in the league. After savvily adding combo forward Taurean Prince and guard Delon Wright to minimum deals, the Bucks’ bench is looking far more impressive this year than it had in 2023-24. Prince and Wright will be joining perpetual Sixth Man of the Year center/power forward Bobby Portis as key reserves for the revamped club.
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