11:55am: Jennings clarified his comments during this morning's shootaround, as Scott Sargent of WFNY writes.
"It really doesn’t matter what market it’s in," Jennings said. "I’m just keeping my options open. That’s just the main thing. I’m not saying I’m unhappy in Milwaukee, Milwaukee has been very good to me. It’s just one of those things, when the time is coming up, you start thinking. You just never know."
8:09am: Brandon Jennings's rookie contract with the Bucks is set to expire after the 2012/13 season, but the 22-year-old doesn't sound like he's ready to sign a long-term extension. Jennings told Chris Broussard of ESPN.com that he will seriously entertain the idea of leaving Milwaukee when he becomes eligible for free agency.
While Jennings didn't crack yesterday's list of All-Star reserves, his 18.9 PPG, .426 FG%, and 19.2 PER would all be career-highs. The former tenth overall pick was drafted by the Bucks in 2009, but sounds like he's interested in exploring bigger markets.
"I am going to keep my options open, knowing that the time is coming up,'' Jennings said. "I'm doing my homework on big-market teams…. I'm not saying I won't (sign an extension with the Bucks) and I'm not saying I will. I'm just keeping my options open."
I can't see many big-market teams going to great lengths to clear cap space in order to make a run at Jennings, but at the very least, he'd be one of the top restricted free agents available in 2013. Blake Griffin, James Harden, Tyreke Evans, Stephen Curry, and Jrue Holiday are among the other players entering the last year of their rookie contracts in 2012/13.
Since the Bucks will have the opportunity to match any offer sheet Jennings signs in 2013, the earliest he could become an unrestricted free agent is 2014.