Sacramento – In 2023, Brook Lopez can be called an NBA veteran, All-Star, or NBA champion, and now the Milwaukee Bucks center is set on adding another title to his impressive resume. This season he is one of the top candidates to win the Defensive Player of the Year award, and he wants it.
The Fresno native is third in the NBA in blocks with 2.5 a game and has a defensive rating of 107.1, placing Lopez 10th in the league.
Will Lopez win the award
On Sideline Sources� Minutes With Mark podcast, Lopez acknowledged his desire to win Defensive Player of the Year. When asked if he wanted to win the award, he gave a direct reply.
�Yeah. Definitely, Lopez told Sideline Sources. �It�s a huge honor to be known as that high-caliber defender. I�m happy to even be in the discussion, and I�m just lucky to be on a great defensive team with lots of teammates that have my back and can defend. So, I�m proud to be on the best defensive team in the league.�
Lopez�s teammates include superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, who won the MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in 2020. Then you have point guard Jrue Holiday, who has made an All-Defensive team four times in his career. These two and Lopez are the foundation for the Bucks’ defense.
If Lopez wins Defensive Player of the Year this season, he and Antetokounmpo will become the first teammates to each win the award in NBA history. As the season is nearing its end, this possibility is becoming closer and closer to reality.
The Bucks have been the best team in the NBA all year. After consecutive victories against the Sacramento Kings and Phoenix Suns, they are the first to reach 50 wins this season. Next, Lopez and his squad will head home to face the Indiana Pacers, hoping to push their streak to three.
