Bucks' Eric Bledsoe Says He Thinks Brook Lopez Is NBA Defensive Player of Year

The 38-6 Milwaukee Bucks are coasting to the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed en route to what they hope will be their first NBA title since 1971.

The Bucks (namely Giannis Antetokounmpo) should garner numerous individual accolades and awards along the way, and point guard Eric Bledsoe gave his Defensive Player of the Year endorsement to center Brook Lopez following their team's 117-97 road win over the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday.

Lopez blocked five Nets shots in just 26 minutes while helping the Bucks hold Brooklyn to just 33.3 percent shooting from the field.

The ex-Stanford big man has averaged a career-high 2.6 blocks on the season and is on a tear of late, with 28 in his past nine games. He has blocked five or more shots eight times this year.

Lopez is ranked 19th out of 59 qualified centers in defensive real plus-minus, per ESPN. He's also ranked 20th in defensive win shares among players who have participated in 12 or more games, per NBA.com.

Lopez also does things that don't show up in the typical box score. Per NBA.com (h/t @BucksFans5), he's first in the NBA in shot contests on two-pointers and overall shot contests.

The 31-year-old may not be the best DPOY candidate on his team, with Antetokounmpo—an MVP and DPOY contender—serving as a likely front-runner for the award.

However, Lopez deserves a ton of credit for Milwaukee sitting first in defensive efficiency, per ESPN.