Milwaukee Bucks news: Khris Middleton, Brook Lopez trending in opposite directions

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard are the titular stars in Milwaukee, but vets Brook Lopez and Khris Middleton have formed the Bucks heart and soul for nearly a decade. However, Lopez, 36, and Middleton, 33 are nearing the end of their stints.

Lopez is on an expiring contract and turns 37 in April. Amid a week in which Milwaukee has lost two of their three games, and with their only win coming against the team with the worst record in the West, Middleton and Lopez’s Bucks careers are trending in opposite directions. 

Good news: Brook Lopez still has it 

On Tuesday night, the 7-foot-1 Lopez became the only player with 1,000+ 3-pointers and 2,000+ blocks in a career. This season, he owns the second-longest streak of games with a block and a 3-pointer in six straight games. The only player with a longer streak of games with a 3-pointer and a block is Victor Wembanyama, whose streak is at 35 and counting. 

Wembanyama is in a different stratosphere, but Lopez still being in rare air speaks for itself. Lopez’s place on the Bucks isn’t as safe as Dame or Giannis Antetokounmpo, but he’s in the next tier of Bucks players ensured to last through the trade deadline.

Adaptability has been the root of Lopez’s longevity. His career exemplifies the arc of the center position. Lopez began his career as a low-post and midrange obelisk and transformed his game over half a decade into his career. That floor spacing has been paramount in lineups next to Giannis Antetokounmpo who has carved out a space as the league’s most physically imposing low-post scoring threat. 

During the first six years of his career, Lopez never had a season where 3-pointers constituted more than 10 percent of his shot diet. By year eight, Lopez’s 3-point attempt rate had risen to 33 percent. In Milwaukee, his percentage of field goal attempts from downtown has hovered over 60 percent every season since 2018

Defensively, Lopez remains one of the NBA’s top rim defenders. Of the top defenders in terms of opponent field goal percentage at the rim, Lopez, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Wemby are the only bigs who are also certified threats outside the arc. There were rumors in the offseason that Lopez would be traded, but in year 17, he’s still logging 32 minutes a night and operating as the league’s oldest starting stretch-five.

Bad News: Khris Middleton’s 0-fers 

The Bucks have now lost two of their last three games, but that's not the worst of it. Losses to the Trail Blazers and Clippers have stalled the momentum they’d produced since Jan. 6 of this year. In their defense, Milwaukee should be a tired team. They played three games in four nights, got stuck in New Orleans during a snowstorm, landed in Miami a few hours before tip-off, and then went back on the road for a four-game road trip.

The sky isn’t falling. However, the most disturbing aspect has been the play of Khris Middleton. After a stretch when he was flourishing off the bench, shooting 20-for-26 inside the arc and showing he could still be a positive contributor in the rotation, Middleton regressed into a comatose state through their last few games. Middleton sandwiched a 22-point outpouring against the Utah Jazz on Monday with a pair of scoreless nights in 34 combined minutes against the Clippers and Trail Blazers. 

After the loss to Portland, Rivers specifically called out Middleton by name during his postgame presser for his passiveness on a night when he attempted two field goals. “He [Middleton] didn’t touch the ball, and that’s the bottom line. Like Khris Middleton, had a hell of a game last night and he had two attempts tonight. That’s inexcusable.”

The timing couldn’t be worse for him as the trade deadline approaches. In addition to rekindling trade rumors with his no-shows, he simultaneously made it more difficult for the Bucks to dump him by tanking his stock. At this point, any team acquiring Middleton would have to look at it as a salary dump. Sure, he provides veteran wisdom, but with a player option for next season valued at $34 million per year, there are cheaper veteran options out there. It's becoming increasingly obvious that sentimentality needs to be shoved aside and that Middleton should be shipped out in the next few weeks if the Bucks have any hopes of contending with the remainder of their current roster.