Chicago Bulls: Will Robin Lopez re-sign this summer?

The emerging importance of the Chicago Bulls 30-year-old center Robin Lopez behind future star Wendell Carter Jr. is more noticeable than ever.

Veteran center Robin Lopez is having a very interesting season with the Chicago Bulls this year. If we backtrack to the beginning of the season, Lopez was put in a backup role behind Wendell Carter Jr. before the season started. Lopez was supposed to help mentor Wendell and help his transition to the NBA come easy, now he’s playing close to 40 minutes per game.

Early in the season, Lopez had a hard time offensively adjusting to coming off the bench and would rarely play more than 20 minutes per game. When Carter Jr. faced his season-ending injury in January, Robin was able to see more playing time and which later on allowed him to change the script.

Lopez was a likely trade target and the Chicago Bulls were even considering buying out his contract for $14.4 million. But everything changed after the trade deadline.

Post-trade deadline “RoLo” became an offensive monster, flaunting his nice footwork, nifty pump fakes, and his skilled post moves while continuing to be a defensive stud. He has averaged 16.1 points and 5.7 boards per game since the trade deadline.

The Chicago Bulls Bulls are finishing the season strong and Lopez has been making solid contributions each and every night, which makes you wonder what will happen to him after this season?

The Bulls are currently very slim at the center position and its hard to let go such a productive player like Lopez. Lopez is approaching the end of his contract and if the Bulls don’t resign, another team will definitely be happy to pick up the hype veteran.

Cristiano Felicio has been very unpleasant to watch and with Carter Jr. not being able to complete his first full season, a secondary center is highly necessary.

Despite the Bulls having trouble winning games, “RoLo” favors the Bulls and desires to stay in Chicago. Lopez sees the potential this young Chicago Bulls roster has and wants to continue to be apart of the culture and hopefully help bring the team out of its rebuild.

Most veterans towards the end of their careers look to play with teams that are contenders but RoLo has always been a rogue player.

Lopez has raised his stock over the past few weeks and teams have taken notice. In free agency, there are few doubts that he will be listening to many offers, so it puts the Bulls in a difficult position because they only have about $20 million in cap space this off-season and the roster still needs a lot of work. The Bulls are also potentially looking to lock-in another quality player in free agency.

Luckily, it has been rumored that Lopez would be willing to take a slight pay cut to stick with the Bulls but he is looking for a two-to-four year contract. The Bulls still have to offer him something competitive, but it is nice to know that the Bulls are first in mind.

Knowing that “RoLo” loves Chicago, and knowing that he is well-liked and respected by Jim Boylen, John Paxson, Gar Forman and the rest of the Bulls coaching staff, it’s hard to see him playing elsewhere.