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How John Henson Fits In With The Bucks Core

ByJordan Treske|

In what was truly a landmark summer, the Milwaukee Bucks may have finally solved their big man problem by adding Greg Monroe.

After all, it wasn’t that long ago that the team traded away the former first overall pick in Andrew Bogut to the Golden State Warriors.

Up until the addition of Monroe, the team brought in various big men like Samuel Dalembert, Zaza Pachulia and Ekpe Udoh to see if they could find the answer. Of course, the emergence of Larry Sanders a couple of seasons ago changed the team’s course dramatically.

However, hindsight is 20/20 and out of that group of players, Pachulia worked out the best for the team, especially at the value that they got him at. But it’s safe to say, things could have not turned out better for the Bucks in the short amount of time it took to get here.

The one player that remains on the team throughout all of this is John Henson.

In the three plus years Henson has been in Milwaukee, he’s gone through it all. Whether it was the team’s dysfunctional locker room situation a couple of years ago, playing on the team’s worst year in franchise history as well as his own various ups and downs, Henson, like the team, has come out on the other side.

Never mind the type of player performance he’s had over the years, but Henson could have easily soured on his experience in Milwaukee, like many other players around him have over the years.

However, the addition of coach Jason Kidd and the start of the Lasry/Edens/Dinan ownership this past season gave the team, as well as the players, a fresh start.

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Early on this past year, Henson embraced his role coming off the bench and being a great teammate by doing the little things, whether it was celebrating a scoring play or getting off the bench to encourage teammates after a much needed timeout.

In his first full season playing primarily in a center role, Henson showed more promise as the team’s lone big man on the court, versus being paired with another big man.

Although his play after the All-Star break fell off, like a few others on the team, Henson ended up leading the team this past season in PER with a rating of 18, as well as being fifth among league leaders with 2 blocks per game, per Basketball-Reference.com.

His strong performance in the playoff series against Chicago as a change of pace/energy guy off the bench raised some eyebrows from fans, the team and around the league.

However, the team felt they still needed an upgrade. It eventually led to the addition of Monroe, but the team had a decision to make in trying to sort out their crowded big man situation.

What made sorting out the situation even more interesting was during a press conference to introduce Monroe, as well as re-introducing swingman Khris Middleton, was the specific mention of Henson being a part of the team’s young core.

Just mere hours later, Pachulia was sent to Dallas for a heavily protected 2nd round pick and the situation was sorted out. But the specific mention of Henson, as well as the resulting Pachulia move, definitely caught the eyes of almost all Bucks fans and Henson himself.

Not long after the Monroe and ensuing Pachulia moves, reports of a contract extension between the team and Henson surfaced further reiterating the team’s view of Henson. While specific details of the extension, if true, remain to be seen, long time Bucks fans have to be wondering if this was just another Dan Gadzuric situation.

While the worries are justified in a situation that’s a bit similar to how Gadzuric was awarded his contract extension, it makes sense why the team is rumored to want to keep Henson around long-term.

If Henson can build on his performance in the playoffs next season, he’ll be a great counter to the more offensively talented Monroe, as well as being a worthy replacement if any injury came along (knock on wood).

Along with that, there is a real possibility of Henson and Monroe playing together at the same time, which tends to go against coach Jason Kidd’s tendency for a more small ball lineup. If it can break the right way, it gives the team a much needed solution when going against bigger teams.

For a player that has gone through the ups and downs that Henson’s gone through in his young career, could Henson have finally found his perfect role on the team?

It may not be what everyone envisioned with Henson, including himself, but finding your role in this league is very hard and the biggest thing that comes with it is accepting it.

Fans may be skeptical to what his value to the team’s core is, but it’s not unheard of to see primarily a backup big man being evaluated as part of the team’s key core of players.

All of this isn’t to say that Henson’s a polished player at this point. He still has room to improve this summer, especially on the offensive end. However, the signing of Monroe, as well as the hopeful improvement of Henson finally gives the Bucks some much needed stability at one of their most turned over positions.

Next: Eastern Conference Playoffs: Where Do The Bucks Fit In?

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