The “block party” signed Brook Lopez

Without Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Bucks overcame the Nets (118-113), securing a 19th victory in the last 20 games! And as often, in the absence of the Greek, Brook Lopez came out of his box with a monumental performance, coming close to a triple-double with 24 points, 10 rebounds and 9 blocks!

“It was a close match, and he made the moves that made the difference at the end” said Mike Budenholzer.

With his 9 blocks, Brook Lopez breaks his own career record, he is the first player to reach this total in the field since Rudy Gobert, who reached this mark on March 22, 2021 against the Bulls.

But, if there is one cons to remember in particular, it was the last one. The Bucks led by four points with less than 30 seconds left when David Duke Jr. attacked the circle before running into the wall Lopez, who stretched out his right arm to fend off his attempt, sealing the victory for the Bucks.

“He’s one of a kind, he’s a guy who allows us to be much more aggressive, to go over screens, to put more pressure on opposing players…”

“It’s thanks to our backcourt who did a good job. Brooklyn was taking outside shots, and so on that last possession, see the last two, our backcourt did a good job forcing them to attack the basket.” pointed out Brook Lopez. “And when they give them that one option, I’m able to anticipate and counter the opponent. If he comes at full speed, I can catch him arriving at the right time”.

Milwaukee has the league’s third-best defensive rating this season, and Brook Lopez’s presence on the floor plays a big part in that. The pivot is thus running at 2.5 blocks per game this season, the third best average in the league, only Jaren Jackson Jr. (3.2) and Nic Claxton (2.6) doing better.

“He’s one of a kind, he’s a guy who allows us to be much more aggressive, to go over screens, to put more pressure on opposing players…” acknowledged Pat Connaughton. “Knowing he’s there, it’s very difficult to target him on pick-and-rolls because passes are difficult to make, because you don’t know if he’s going to try to intercept the ball or if he go make the right read and catch whoever goes to the layup”.

With his impact on the Milwaukee defense, Brook Lopez is logically one of the three favorites for the “Defender of the Year” trophy, along with Jaren Jackson Jr. and Bam Adebayo.