MILWAUKEE — Like fine wine, Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez is getting better with age. The 15-year NBA veteran is averaging a career-best 2.6 blocks per game, tying Brooklyn’s Nic Claxton for the league-lead while inserting himself into the Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) conversation.
Lopez spoke with NBA Insider Michael Scotto after the Bucks’ comeback victory against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. The 34-year-old center expressed his concurrent desires to compete for the DPOY title and remain in Milwaukee long-term.
“I love it here. I’m so thankful for the opportunity the Bucks gave me five years ago to come here and be a part of something special,” Brook Lopez told Scotto. “We’ve had a great time. I can’t imagine being anywhere else.”
Lopez is eligible for a two-year extension worth up to $34.7 million to remain with the Bucks through 2025. Otherwise, his current four-year deal will expire and Lopez will become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
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There’s a serious case to be made that he’s having his most impactful season as an NBA pro. In addition to making 50% of his shot attempts and 38.1% of five 3-point attempts per game, Lopez is one of the single most meaningful defenders in basketball this season.
Milwaukee is four points per 100 possessions better with Lopez on the floor than off this season, and his 101 blocks are five more than the runner-up and 22 more than the third-ranked Jaren Jackson Jr. Lopez leads the NBA in total contested shots, contested 2-point field goal attempts and contested shots per game.
When asked whether the DPOY trophy was on his mind, Lopez made the following comments:
“It’s definitely a goal of mine. Obviously, I’m a team-first player who wants the team to be successful. We want to win a championship. That’s our main goal. It definitely would be a personal point of pride for me, and it’s a goal for myself.”
Scotto also spoke to Lopez’s Milwaukee Bucks teammates Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday, who each raved about their starting center’s resurgent campaign.
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“He’s a big part of why this team is so great defensively and offensively. He’s playing right now at a very high level,” Antetokounmpo said. “He’s literally covering our butts on defense every single possession.”
Giannis also told reporters that he believes Lopez is the Defensive Player of the Year through almost half of their season. Holiday chimed in and agreed before the two-time MVP continued applauding his teammates’ efforts.
“He’s going to block a lot of shots, contest everything, rebound the ball for us, play defense for us, and sometimes dive on the floor,” Antetokounmpo said. “That’s what makes him great. He competes hard for this team. I’m so happy that [Jrue Holiday] and [Brook Lopez] are on my side, and I’m not playing against them.”
Milwaukee continues its four-game road trip with a visit to Atlanta before back-to-back games in Miami. Although the Bucks are 4-6 in their last 10 games, the team stands at the third-seed in the Eastern Conference with the third-best defensive rating in basketball — largely due to the efforts of Brook Lopez.
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