Chicago Bulls player reviews: Robin Lopez

Our player reviews take us to everyone’s favorite Simpsons character look alike: Robin Lopez. How did the big man fare his first year with the Chicago Bulls?

Robin Lopez was the second best player on the Chicago Bulls this season. Take a step back, look at that statement again, go look at the Bulls roster and come back. Yes, it’s true and it shouldn’t be surprising.

As much as I enjoy Lopez and think he’s a little undervalued, him being the second best player on the Bulls is more of a testament to the lack of talent and production on the roster.

More from Bulls News

Lopez came to Chicago in the deal that sent Derrick Rose to the New York Knicks and immediately filled a void at the center position. Joakim Noah, god bless his beautiful soul, is not the player he used to be and Lopez represented an upgrade at a cheaper price.

RoLo did what he does best: grab boards and offer solid rim-protection and defense. The Bulls grabbed a higher percentage of offensive and defensive rebounds with RoLo on the court during the regular season.

The Bulls had a smashmouth, control the glass identity for much of the season with RoLo and Taj Gibson paired together. When the Bulls jumped out to a 2-0 lead on the Boston Celtics in the playoffs, it was largely due to RoLo’s annihilation of the glass.

On shots 10 feet or closer to the basket, opponents shot six percent worse on average against Lopez. However, on shots farther than 15 feet from the basket, opponents shot eight percent better against him.

This highlights the “flaw” in RoLo’s game: he’s a traditional center playing in an era where traditional centers are losing value.

He isn’t a mobile big who can get out on the perimeter and handle guards, which leaves him vulnerable in certain matchups. RoLo gets put in a bind if the opposing team goes small or has a center that can shoot. We saw the Celtics exploit this in the playoffs with the Isaiah Thomas-Al Horford pick and roll.

While RoLo offers great rim protection, it comes at the expense of 3-pointers. Considering Chicago couldn’t shoot 3s to save its life this past season, giving up 3s especially hurts.

RoLo is limited as a scorer. He was assisted on nearly 70 percent of his baskets this season, which mostly come at the basket or in the mid-range.

RoLo’s shot chart is not particularly appealing to the eye, as the only places he shot above the league average were in the mid-range. Teams are often content to give him this shot and for good reason: Lopez shot 44 percent from the mid-range this season.

Some nights he hits them, some nights he doesn’t. But what needs to be pointed out is the offense RoLo played in this season. It was largely horrendous.

The paint was crowded due to lack of spacing and that affects Lopez’s ability to get good looks at the basket after being the roll man on a P’n’R.

If the Bulls can put a shooting guard in the starting lineup that can actually shoot, it would open up more space for RoLo to work with down low.

More from Pippen Ain't Easy

What Chicago does not need to do though, is give him more post ups. Somehow he gets those hook line drives to go in, but let’s look for a more efficient shot.

To cap it off I’ll say this: Robin Lopez is a great guy to have on your team. His war on mascots provides endless comedy and he brings his dog to exit interviews. He’s a nerd with a love for comics that happens to be seven feet tall and can ball.

What’s not to love about this guy?