Robin Lopez Still an Enigma as Phoenix Suns Frontcourt Finds Early Success

will be the problem for Robin as long as Gortat is healthy. Gortat is an above average center, and potentially allstar worthy so I expect him to get 28+ minutes a night. I don’t see any scenarios where we want Gortat and Lopez on the floor at the same time, so Lopez is going to be limited in his opportunities and his numbers will fluctuate. I personally think Robin will continue to improve and find ways to contribute, and that the Suns have a good problem at the center position.

He is playing crappy, he will feel like we are backing up his hard work and then we wouldn´t have to worry about he leaving next year so we can spend our money on two çm superstars???, above the average FA.

4 mil and 3 years might be a little too much of time, but i would try to pursue that deal now…

Lopez will not be with the Suns.

He will either play his way into a contract the Suns will not want to pay [to keep cap room for other deals], play his way into some team believing he has upside and value and offering him with the Suns either sign-n-trade or letting him walk [so they don’t overpay him], play inconsistently and suns trading him at deadline, or play very poorly and suns don’t offer him his QO.

Last year, and the season before, really, he was hampered by injuries. This season, he’s showing much more promise than last, but Gortat is clearly more consistent and will remain the starter. And so he’s playing off the bench with people that don’t pass the ball, so he can’t be as productive as possible. He’s in a tough spot.

There are moments when he relapses to last year- but, darn it, his confidence would be so much better if that 2nd unit used him effectively by giving him the ball in the right circumstances instead of chucking up mostly bad shots (i’m looking at you, Brown).

All in all, I’m happy he’s here this year. I agree wtih the comment above that we’ll probably lose him at the end of the year. And, that’ll be ok if we replace him with someone decent- but I’d like to see him become a real threat this year either way, for the good of this year and for his career.

One more thing… people get down on our draft picks, but Goran’s looking good, Lopez can be good, Morris is obviously good. That is better than a lot of team’s picks for the past few years. I think they’ve done ok. Morris looks like the best pick since Amare, and you can’t complain about that. With all the big men coming out of next summer’s draft, we could get another nice pick if Lopez leaves.

Remember that Lopez is playing with people he has never played with in a system that only HE is familiar with. Morris does well because, frankly, the kid doesn’t know any better. He is barely playing Suns system ball, he is just super good at the fundamentals and his shot is great. But you stick Lopez out there with one person who has been here more than 2 months – Warrick – plus 3 BRAND NEW guys and you are bound to have foul ups.

There is a reason, I think, that he did so well the first game – he was with the starters.

scary muthaf*cka that every basketball team has to have? Like he’s mostly there to discourage other teams from brawlin it up. You just look at him, and you’re like… hell no, that big mofo gonna shank somebody.

That was what I was thinking b/f reading the comments. Channing can slip to the 5 when the Suns “go small” and Gortat deserves to be first team and more minutes than Lopez. Where is there room?

Regardless of everything else, there is simply not much room for him to play and grow, so it will be hard for him to work into whatever more potential he may have. Any 7-footer that can walk and chew gum at the same time plays for 10+ years, and he’s got more than that. Seems like he has some trade value — picks, expiring contracts, Price’s/Telfair’s replacment(s) for next year.

to incorporate rest days could be invaluable.

If Gortat, Frye, and Morris all had a day off every 10 games it would give Lopez a start (time with the starters) and two games with extended minutes every 10 game interval, while still keeping him fresh by allocating a day off.

Hard to evaluate a guy in a contract year and see what he’s made of (or showcase him for a trade) when he’s playing 18.3 minutes per game (9th on the team). Unless maybe they’re intentionally trying to keep his numbers low (6.1 ppg and 4.8 rpg) to suppress his earning capacity on the free market….

I would say that four years into the Rolo experiment that it’s time for the rubber to hit the road or to cut bait and switch. I think the best way to test the mettle and fortitude of a player is to put him in a position where he has a chance to succeed and let him prove his worthiness. Playing a fourth year player who was drafted with the hope of evolving into a franchise center 18 minutes a night off the bench is not putting him in a position to succeed.

I think that Lopez will be too expensive of a back up and doesn’t mesh will the Suns offseason plans for free agent domination. The Suns already have Gortat, Frye, and Morris on team friendly terms. Lopez is expendable. If they don’t plan on re-signing him they should deal him at the deadline.

I think Looez just has to find his rhythm again in our offense. I got really excited about him after the first game, probably too prematurely, but I still think he can be a big contributor especially against 2nd string centers.

Speaking of 2nd team, I think that’s another reason for his struggles. So far neither Price nor Telfair has done very well in setting up our players. Lopez would greatly benefit from playing with a more capable back-up who can find him inside or run a P&R effectively.