Despite reports that the team is looking to trade Brook Lopez, Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst says that they “have zero interest or intention” in moving the 16-year veteran.
The Bucks are rumored to want a more versatile defense than they have with Lopez.
Bucks Claim ‘Zero Interest’ In Trading Brook Lopez
“First of all, rumors and chatter are what makes the league so interesting and so fun, so people are always going to speculate and talk about it,” Horst tells The Athletic’s Eric Nehm. “…But I will say, because Brook is so core to who we are, we have zero intentions of trading Brook.”
“Of course he has value around the league. That’s a credit to him. But we’ve not engaged in any real conversations about trading Brook. There are teams that have a lot of value and interest in him. It’s my job to take calls, receive calls, have conversations, but Brook has been and will continue to be core to who we are.
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People are going to always speculate and have conversations and they’ll think they know what they’re talking about, but at the end of the day, we have zero interest or intention of trading Brook Lopez. He’s a core part of our team. We’ve got a starting group now that we think is as good as anybody and we look forward to seeing how this team plays throughout the year.”
While short of turning away calls for Lopez, it’s clear that the Bucks have a deep appreciation for his talent.
The all-time leading scorer and shot-blocker in Brooklyn Nets history, Lopez is now a big piece of Milwaukee’s puzzle. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Bobby Portis —and now Damian Lillard —are the ones being looked to for their firepower. However, Lopez is one of the few rim-protectors who is a legitimate threat from 3-point range. Making 35.4 percent of his 3s since joining the Bucks in 2018, he’s converted a truly efficient 37.0 percent of his 3-pointers the last two seasons.
Of course, it makes him valuable to other teams as well. As Horst admits, he’s doing his job by hearing what they have to offer for the former All-Star. Furthermore, only a couple of players in the NBA are truly untouchable. Just consider the fact that last season the Los Angeles Lakers took a call from the Golden State Warriors about LeBron James.
A superstar like Antetokounmpo may be safe, as he’s 10 years James’s junior. Still, Horst may even be willing to see what package he can attract. So, when it comes to the 36-year-old Lopez, who isn’t the most mobile big man, there’s an even higher likelihood that he’ll listen.
Lopez to the Lakers?
Speaking of the Lakers, Horst may have been referring to L.A.’s rumored pursuit of Lopez.
With Lakers new head coach JJ Redick stating he wants a center with traditional size, Lopez may have very well been a target. After all, the Lakers have had trouble defending Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic the last couple of seasons. Having Lopez’s 7-foot-1 and 280-plus-pound frame at their disposal could change that.
Of course, L.A. is also all but out of resource. They’re on a tight budget, which has led to marquee free agents turning them down. They only have two first round picks that they can trade due to the Stepien Rule. On top of that, they don’t want to trade their only player with real value outside of James in Anthony Davis: Austin Reaves.
Even if Horst did pick up the phone for them, they probably weren’t making an appealing enough offer. Until they do, they’ll have to hope for a similar albeit lesser player to make their way to them, like Washington Wizards center Jonas Valanciunas.
