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Bucks request waivers on Sanders
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
The turbulent tenure of Larry Sanders officially ended Saturday night as the Milwaukee Bucks announced they were requesting waivers on the center.
Sanders, 26, appeared in 27 games this season for Milwaukee and averaged 7.3 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 21.7 minutes per game. He had not played since Dec. 23 due to personal reasons and also served a 10-game NBA suspension for marijuana use before being reinstated to the active roster for Milwaukee’s Feb. 11 game against the Sacramento Kings.
“We believe this decision is in the best interest of our team,” Bucks general manager John Hammond said in a statement released by the team. “We wish Larry well and remain excited about the future of the Bucks organization.”
Earlier this week, the Dallas Mavericks were reportedly interested in Sanders once a buyout took place, but reports indicate that Sanders will take the rest of the season off.
The Bucks drafted Sanders 15th overall in 2010. In 2012-13 he averaged a career high 9.8 points and 9.5 rebounds while averaging a career best 27.3 minutes in 71 games.
Following the 2012-13 season, the Bucks signed Sanders to a four-year, $44 million extension that began this year and that’s where the problems started.
He missed 25 games with a torn ligament in his thumb after being injured in a December 2013 nightclub altercation in Milwaukee, drawing fines for two citations of disorderly conduct as well as assault and battery charges. Four months later, Sanders fractured his right orbital bone and in April 2014, the NBA gave him a five-game suspension for a positive marijuana test.
