Milwaukee Bucks: Who is the third-best player on the team right now?

Top-tier Candidates

Brook Lopez: It’s very difficult to reinvent yourself in any profession, let alone in professional sports. That’s why it was outstanding to watch center Brook Lopez transform into Splash Mountain in his 11th NBA season last year, launching triples from far beyond the 3-point line and draining them at a 36.5 percent clip.

Unfortunately, that’s not the same Brook that the Bucks got in year two of this experiment as his 57.1 percent true shooting plummeted down to 50.1 percent this season. Lopez is 13th in true shooting for the Bucks despite playing the third-most minutes (1,622) of anyone on the team.

If not for his phenomenal effort on the other end of the floor, Lopez might’ve been a candidate to get traded for a more desirable starting big man at the trade deadline in February.

NBA.com has Lopez listed as having the fifth-most defensive win shares of any player this season (9.3) for his efforts as an elite rim defender. He’s the second-best shot-blocker in the league, stuffing 2.4 shots per game. Lopez defends 16.8 shots per game, which is more than all but five players in the entire league. Even with that being the case, he holds his opposition to only 41.8 percent shooting from the field and just 44.1 percent within six feet from the basket.

Lopez remains an effective player within his lane and might’ve taken that third spot had his shooting efficiency remained halfway decent like it was last season.

George Hill: There’s an undeniable case for George Hill as the third-best player on the Bucks this year starting first and foremost with the fact that he’s the league-leader in 3-point percentage. From his rookie year in San Antonio up to last season when he arrived in Milwaukee, Hill was a fine shooter at 37.8 percent from deep.

Hill must’ve been a strict diet of Wheaties and Protein Powder this past offseason because he skyrocketed up to 48.0 percent on 152 attempts so far this season. His 3-point threat has been an astounding revelation for a player who many thought would fizzle out by this point in his career.

It’s not just the shooting that’s been shocking. Hill has also been one of the team’s most effective defenders, holding his matchup to 41.3 percent shooting from the field this year. He’s always been a fiery defender who gives his all on both ends of the floor, sacrificing his body and reading the opposition to rotate perfectly into place as much as his body will allow him.

From the moment Hill entered the league, he played like a savvy vet, so it shouldn’t be surprising that one of the best versions we’ve seen of Hill is when he’s just that. He leads all eligible guards in true shooting percentage (66.8 percent) and has a higher assist-to-turnover ratio than any other guard on the team at 3.08. He takes care of the ball at all costs, resulting in the third-most offensive win shares on the team with 3.2.

For as impressive as he’s been this season, Hill’s efficiency can’t overstep the player who he’s played backup to for the last season and a half.