Milwaukee Bucks: Grades for Brook Lopez’s one-year, $3.4 million deal
By Adam McGee
Overall Grade
Bad decisions and signings have been an all too familiar sight for Bucks fans in recent years, and as a result, there are many who’ve developed a relentless sense of pessimism or, in some cases, criticism surrounding everything the front office does.
With that in mind, it speaks volumes of just how good this signing was that it received almost universal acclaim from fans on social media, and pundits and experts across the wider NBA sphere.
Signing one of the league’s best scoring centers, who is a former All-Star, for just $3.4 million is a good deal in a vacuum, even if Lopez is crossing over into the latter stages of his career.
Considering Milwaukee’s situation only makes the move all the more positive, though. With limited options available to them this summer, the Bucks have managed to significantly bolster their depth, do nothing to further damage their already challenging long-term cap flexibility, and sign players who fit well with their existing core while also representing many of the changes the team’s new coach is hoping to introduce.
Lopez’s signing makes the Bucks more talented and more dynamic, and even if he doesn’t end up being a long-term piece of the franchise’s future, he could certainly help in creating a template that Thon Maker or others may be asked to step into over time.
Next: Win in 6 Podcast #233: Reacting to the Brook Lopez signing
This deal isn’t perfect as there’s a very strong chance that the Bucks will be left to rue not having Lopez on a similarly cheap deal for another 12 months when next summer comes around. But considering the options available to them this year, this is likely as good as it realistically could ever have got for Milwaukee in the offseason of 2018.
Overall Grade: A