Milwaukee Bucks: Brook Lopez reaching new heights as defensive anchor

Even as he’s battled through his shooting inconsistencies, Milwaukee Bucks big man Brook Lopez remains a fixture in the success the team is having on the defensive end this year.

It hasn’t been the easiest start for starting Milwaukee Bucks big man Brook Lopez this 2019-20 season.

On the offensive end, Lopez has endured through a lengthy cold shooting spell and while he has shown recent signs of breaking out of his slump, Splash Mountain’s ability to space the floor hasn’t been on par with what he was able to do last year as he’s currently hitting just 28.7 percent of his 87 three-point tries this season.

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The Bucks and Lopez have found other ways to open up the veteran’s offense and use him as a key valve within the Bucks’ offensive system, whether it’s using him more as a roll man or throwing it down to Lopez in the low post with his back to the basket when they want to slow the game down/muster tough buckets.

That’s helped buoy Lopez’s offense where he’s currently averaging a career-low 10.8 points on the fewest shots he’s attempted throughout his career on a per 36-minute basis (11.8). But Lopez has done that while converting 56.9 percent of the two-point shots he’s taken so far this season, the second-highest rate of his 12-year career.

With all that said, the 31-year-old’s work on the defensive end has shone in the season so far as the Bucks have looked to maintain their elite level defense, which currently stands fifth in defensive efficiency following their 122-118 win over the Utah Jazz Monday night.

Lost in the shuffle and hoopla from superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s 50-point performance was Lopez delivering a game-saving rejection at the rim on Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell with five seconds left in the contest that effectively ended their fourth quarter comeback attempt and gave the Bucks their eighth straight victory.

Finishing with four blocks on Monday night, protecting the rim and blocking shots at an incredible rate has been a season-long trend so far for Lopez as he’s third in the NBA with 2.6 blocks per game, standing behind Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac and Los Angeles Lakers All-Star big man Anthony Davis. Along with that, Lopez leads the NBA with an 8.0 block percentage, per Basketball-Reference.com.

The Stanford alum has shown over his Bucks tenure to be an excellent rim protector and integral piece that helps the Bucks shut off the basket from opposing teams. But Lopez’s current shot blocking average is trending higher than the career year he experienced on that end of the floor over his first season with the Bucks when he averaged 2.2 blocks per game and tallied a 6.5 block percentage.

The impact of having Lopez’s presence protecting the paint and the rim as a whole has been invaluable for the Bucks’ defense where they are allowing the fewest opposing paint points in the NBA at 39.3. And the Bucks continue to surrender the fewest looks in the restricted area and are tied for allowing the lowest shooting percentage to opposing teams from that area of the floor.

Lopez continues to be a big reason why the Bucks’ defense remains a fixture of consistency in his second season in Milwaukee. While individual defensive field goal statistics can certainly be noisy, it’s worth noting that Lopez currently holds a 40.5 defended field goal percentage on the 7.6 shot attempts he contests within six feet of the basket.

Needless to say, there’s countless pieces of evidence of just how instrumental and valuable Lopez has been, and continues to be, on the defensive end, and Lopez’s defensive rating stands at 100.3 points per 100 possessions this season, which is quite the drop from the 103.4 points per 100 possessions the Bucks surrendered with Lopez on the court last year.

And as the Bucks continue to be an even stronger defensive unit, the impact of Lopez’s services continues to grow, filling out the overall floor and foundation with which they continue to enjoy great success this season.

While all Bucks fans continue to wait and see Lopez break out of his shooting slump, it’s reassuring to know that he continues to hang his hat on the defensive end and the Bucks as a whole are reaping the rewards.