Brook Lopez
Prediction: Will average more three-point attempts per game than two-point attempts.
Why it will happen: Despite being a center that stands seven feet tall, Lopez has reinvented himself in the past couple of years as an outside shooter. Indeed, it was likely the primary reason for the Bucks signing him in the offseason.
Lopez has become such an outside shooter, in fact, that the previous two seasons he’s inched closer to shooting more field goals from beyond the arc than inside it.
In the 2016-2017 season in Brooklyn, Lopez shot 5.2 three-pointers a game and 10.5 two-pointers. Last season in Los Angeles for the Lakers, that disparity decreased to just 4.4 vs 6.3.
This year, playing in an offense perfectly suited to his traits as a spot-up shooter from the outside, this will finally be the year when Lopez shoots more from the outside than the inside.
With players like Giannis, Middleton and Bledsoe looking to attack the paint, Lopez will be asked more than ever to stretch the defense by camping outside the arc, usually in the corner.
From there, he can just sit back and wait for a pass instead of having to create his own offense in the post like he’s had to do in the past. Not a bad gig.
Why it won’t happen: As impressive as Lopez’s transformation into a sweet-shooting big man has been, he still carries with him a cache of post-moves he can break out at any moment.
Even in Budenholzer’s spread-heavy offense, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Lopez become a safety-valve option late in the shot-clock to dump the ball into and let him go to work.
Just because he can shoot the three doesn’t mean he should only shot the three.