NBA Power Rankings: All 30 Starting Centers

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Sep 30, 2013; St. Francis, WI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks player Larry Sanders speaks during media day at Milwaukee Bucks Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports /

26. Larry Sanders — Milwaukee Bucks

Sanders could take the award for having one of the worst attitudes of all centers. Or, maybe it’s just his intensified sense of competitiveness that strikes everyone the wrong way.

Technicals here, fights there. Nightclub predicaments here, marijuana use there. When you’re suiting up for a 15-win, non-playoff team, it’s hard to stay focused on always setting a good example, I guess.

During 2013-14, it was tough for Sanders to even stay on the floor, more less think about doing so in a presentable fashion. A torn ligament in his thumb and then a fractured bone in his face only let him see the court for 23 games, with every facet of his performance taking a step back from his 2012-13 season. Sanders’ PER dropped 4.7 points from his prior year, and he couldn’t keep his True Shooting Percentage above 50 percent (as he did in 2012-13).

It really became one of those washed away years off his career resume, and that’s nothing to become concerned about just at age 26. However, it’s the drug use and relationship with new head coach Jason Kidd that will be the strongest parts to overcome.

I’m overly tired of professional athletes (that get paid ungodly amounts) feeling the need for illegal drugs to make them happy with their lives. How does it even make sense? You’re jeopardizing your job, which happens to be the luckiest in the free world. Not only that, but it’s showing your coach and teammates that you’d rather be under the influence than working your behind off to get the team back into the playoff hunt. Nobody should support having those type of guys on the roster, and it makes 2014-15 a “make or break” experiment for Milwaukee’s misfit.

Sanders inked a new contract extension worth four years, $44 million in August 2013 — seeming to be far too much at this time.

Defensively, there aren’t many aggressive, angry centers that can do a better job at getting you frustrated, which is what Milwaukee should fall in love with again. In his first three seasons, Sanders never recorded a Defensive Rating in triple digits (99, 97, 99), and clearly faced personal and team defensive problems last year (107).

It’s a fresh start for the now healthy Sanders, and the entire Bucks organization that’s undergoing a ton of change.