Khris Middleton further cemented his name as an all-time Milwaukee Buck after he achieved another franchise milestone by recently going up to the team's historic scoring list. While Middleton obtained plenty of flowers and praise from the fans, teammates, and other franchise members upon the fulfillment of this feat, Michael Redd – the man whom he surpassed on the scoring leaderboard – gave him a perfect lookback tribute that stood up beyond all.
Passing of the torch
Days after Middleton moved over his name in the Bucks’ scoring ladder, Redd didn't forget to hand his own congratulatory word to the man whom he considered his student. On Twitter, the former two-time All-Star penned down a touching post that reminisces on his first encounter with Middleton.
As the star swingman inherited his jersey no. 22 upon landing in Milwaukee in 2013, Redd already acknowledged that Middleton is bound to create special things donning his number. And as they say, the rest is just history.
“I remember the first time I met Khris Middleton,” Redd stated. “It was his second season, the first with my beloved Milwaukee Bucks, and Khris was in the training room, laying on a table. Now Khris, like me, was a second-round NBA draft pick. Khris, also like me, had an underwhelming rookie season. (Please don’t Google my stats, ha.)
"When we spoke, then, we already had a lot in common. I don’t remember our exact conversation, but I do remember telling Khris that he was wearing a special number — the same No. 22 that I wore — and that he had big shoes to fill. I walked away impressed, feeling like maybe he could do that. Well, 1 Championship, 10-plus seasons, and 11,555 points later, it’s safe to say Khris has done that. I’m proud of Khris, someone I took under my wing after that day, for the career he’s had," Michael added.
I’m proud of Khris for recently passing me to become Milwaukee’s fifth all-time leading scorer. And I’m proud of Khris for the growth I’ve seen in him as an all-around individual. I don’t recall our exact first conversation, but I’m pretty sure I’ll remember our next one,” the Bucks legend concluded.
Nothing but an honor
It's been a wild ride and journey, after all, for Middleton. From being an unproven second-rounder, he then transformed into a spectacular three-level scoring star – just like what Redd established for himself when he was still repping the franchise back in the day. For him, it's been truly an honor to break Redd's 11,554 points and continue moving up on Milwaukee's scoring board.
“Salute to Michael Redd. He’s been a mentor of mine since I came to Milwaukee. I took over his number (No. 22) a little bit. He's been a great person to reach out to from time to time and talk to,” Middleton said.
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