The Nets shouldn’t blame their collective defensive woes on the big fella. Most of the problem lies on the perimeter, where the guards and wings are struggling mightily to stop slashers and contest three-point shooters.
When opponents bring the ball to the middle, Lopez usually employs great timing and relies on his length to bother shots. Within 10 feet of the hoop,
foes shoot 8.8 percent worse than they do against the rest of the league (45.9 percent compared to 54.7 percent). He’s stout within six feet of the basket too: Attackers are 10.6 percent worse against him than the rest of the league (48.5 percent compared to 59.1 percent).
Lopez’s defensive shot chart (courtesy of NBASavant.com) illustrates how stingy he’s been in contrast to the league average around the hoop:
BrookLopezDChart
The impressive numbers don’t stop there. Lopez is posting career-bests or near-bests in several key categories: defensive rating (104), defensive box plus/minus (1.2), block percentage (5.5) and blocks per 36 minutes (2.5).
There have been sporadic miscues against pick-and-rolls and the occasional unnecessary foul. When opposing teams turn to small-ball lineups, Lopez struggles sometimes to keep pace and challenge shooters.
But thanks to his awareness and length, he’s able to maintain good positioning against post-ups and serve as a dynamic helper away from the ball.