Dairyland Express
Fansided

Bucks: Brook Lopez Resurgence from 3 Would Provide Big Boost

By Paul Bretl

ORLANDO, FL - FEBRUARY 8: Brook Lopez #11 of the Milwaukee Bucks goes up for a jump shot over Aaron Gordon #00 of the Orlando Magic during the game at the Amway Center on February 8, 2020 in Orlando, Florida. The Bucks defeated the Magic 111 to 95. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FL - FEBRUARY 8: Brook Lopez #11 of the Milwaukee Bucks goes up for a jump shot over Aaron Gordon #00 of the Orlando Magic during the game at the Amway Center on February 8, 2020 in Orlando, Florida. The Bucks defeated the Magic 111 to 95. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Brook Lopez has struggled from 3 this season, but if he’s able to build off of his performance against the Spurs, he can provide the Milwaukee Bucks with a big boost in the playoffs.

As the 3-point shot became a more pivotal part of NBA offenses, very few have evolved with the times as well as Brook Lopez has. During his first eight NBA seasons, Lopez would take only 31 3-point attempts and hit just 9.7 percent of them.

However, during a three-year span from 2016 to 2019, Lopez would take 433 shots from downtown, and it culminated with a career year in 2018-2019 with 6.3 attempts per game while hitting 36.5 percent of them. With opponents having to respect Lopez on the perimeter, it created more space for Giannis Antetokounmpo to work, and that’s always going to be a good thing for the Bucks.

Unfortunately, during last year’s postseason is when we began to see Lopez struggle from deep. In the Milwaukee Bucks’ 15 playoff games, he would make just 29.3 percent of his 3-point attempts. But it wasn’t just Lopez who wasn’t making shots, it was most of the team, and their inability to consistently hit from 3 was a big reason that they lost to Toronto in the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Yet even with an offseason to rest and regroup, Lopez 3-point shooting this season has been much closer to what we saw in the playoffs rather than what we saw in the regular season. His attempts per game are down to 4.7, and his 29.6 percent shooting rate is the lowest it’s been since the 2015-2016 season when he took just 14 attempts the entire year.

The good news is that in Milwaukee’s first scrimmage in the bubble against the San Antonio Spurs, we saw Lopez go 3-3 from deep in that game. Now, of course, this is an incredibly small sample size, and by no means am I saying that he’s regained his 2018-2019 regular-season form. But it is also very encouraging.

If during the playoffs Lopez can get back up to that 35-36 percent mark from 3, he is going to provide the Milwaukee Bucks’ offense with a huge boost. Not only does it improve his scoring, but it makes life easier on Giannis as well. With teams having to worry about Lopez on the perimeter, as the video above illustrates, it creates much more room in the paint for Giannis and others to operate.

dark. Next. 8 Observations from Bucks v. Spurs Scrimmage

As a team, the Bucks’ 3-pointing shooting is going to play a key role in their playoff run, and a resurgence from Lopez would go a long way in helping them win the NBA Title. Perhaps it’s just being at Disney World, or maybe Lopez is finding his rhythm once again, either way, let’s hope we continue to see Splash Mountain effective from deep.

All stats via Basketball Reference

Home/Milwaukee Bucks