Brook Lopez has started the opening 34 regular season games for the Milwaukee Bucks. However, he hasn’t closed out in three of his last four games, averaging roughly 23 minutes against the Indiana Pacers, Brooklyn Nets, and the Portland Trail Blazers.
Bobby Portis has taken the other frontcourt spot alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo in those crunchtime minutes in what Doc Rivers described as a matchup-based move, and Brook Lopez is not bothered by it.
“I mean, I get it. I understand the situation. Obviously, we’re gonna run with the hot group or if the other team goes small we’re going to try to match that, so I’m cool,” Lopez said via Jim Owczarski of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
“I’m all about winning. I just want to win. Obviously, I want to contribute too and help, but my bottom line is all winning,” he emphasized.
Brook Lopez’s stats in the Milwaukee Bucks-Toronto Raptors game
With the Toronto Raptors having Jakob Poeltl and Kelly Olynyk in the frontcourt, the Milwaukee Bucks leaned on Brook Lopez more by playing him for 32 minutes. He will likely get the same minutes when they face Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.
The one-time NBA All-Star didn’t let the team down, as he had 16 points, four rebounds, four assists, two blocks, and four three-pointers on 6-for-10 shooting from the field.
Brook Lopez also became the 158th player in NBA history to hit 1,000 career three-pointers during the fourth period.
