The Milwaukee Bucks survived a double-overtime thriller against the Boston Celtics on Tuesday night. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart all missed the contest for Boston, but Jrue Holiday stepped up when needed and scored 40 points in the Bucks win.
With the All-Star Break coming up, the Bucks are a half-game away from the top spot in the Eastern Conference. Giannis Antetokounmpo is a frontrunner for the MVP Award, and now Brook Lopez is beginning to make a serious run for the Defensive Player of the Year Award. In the latest DPOY ladder, Lopez was first ahead of Jaren Jackson Jr. from the Memphis Grizzlies and Robert Williams from the Celtics.
The NBA has released their latest DPOY ladder:
1) Brook Lopez
2) Jaren Jackson Jr.
3) Robert Williams III— TheBucksZone (@TheBucksZoneIG) February 14, 2023
Brook Lopez has been a steady defensive force for the Bucks all year long and he ranks 2nd in the NBA in blocks with 135, just a couple of blocks behind Brooklyn Nets center Nico Claxton.
Can Brook Lopez Win DPOY?
Brook Lopez has a defensive rating of 108.5 this season according to StatMuse, and he has blossomed in his new role while the Bucks fight for the top spot in the East.
Lopez didn’t do himself any favors on Tuesday night, however. The big man finished with just 4 points on 0-of-3 from the field with 3 steals and zero blocks in a rather underwhelming performance. Blake Griffin scored 15 points and Mike Muscala added 18 points down low against Lopez and the Bucks, which caused some discussion about him being a DPOY favorite.
Nonetheless, his performance for the entire season has put him on top of the latest DPOY ladder.
1 Comment
It was overtime, not double overtime…