Milwaukee Bucks Rumors: Robin Lopez plans to sign with Wizards

After spending just one season with the Milwaukee Bucks, big man Robin Lopez reportedly plans to sign with the Washington Wizards in free agency.

The Milwaukee Bucks will be in the market for a new backup center this offseason, as it appears Robin Lopez is on the move elsewhere.

Per Keith Smith of Yahoo! Sports, the 12-year NBA veteran will be joining the Washington Wizards, reportedly for a deal slightly under the approximated $9 million mid-level exception. This news comes just several days after Lopez opted-out of his $5 million option with the Bucks for next season, a move that surprised some people after the up and down 2019-20 season he had.

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Having transitioned to a full-time bench role behind his twin brother Brook Lopez, Robin proved to be a serviceable piece in the rotation for a portion of the regular season. In 66 games, five of them with him in the starting lineup, Lopez averaged 5.4 points on a .492/.333/.528/ slash line, 2.4 rebounds, and 0.7 assists per game. Lopez served as a viable option backing up his brother, providing some much-needed size on the defensive end near the rim and showing off some improved floor spacing capabilities offensively.

Once the postseason rolled around, however, Lopez turned obsolete. Across Milwaukee’s 10-game playoff run, Robin appeared in just three games for a total of 21 minutes. Many believed that this lack of playing time diminished his free agent value and that opt-ing into his $5 million deal for next season would be an easy insurance policy financially.

However, he ultimately opted out of the deal, which turned some heads. The Athletic’s Eric Nehm ($$) reported that Lopez fueled his decision to opt-out with hopes of keeping his freedom and staying out of any trade talks Milwaukee engaged in this offseason. That is surely a justifiable motive on Robin’s end.

Now, he goes to a Washington Wizards team that he will likely receive a more prominent role on, and he also surprisingly landed a deal worth nearly double what Milwaukee had him on the books for. Bucks fans will surely be sad to see the fan-favorite go after just one season with the franchise, but it was undoubtedly a memorable one.

Best of luck to Robin moving forward, of course, but filling his role poses another tall task for general manager Jon Horst in this chaotic offseason.

With Robin Lopez reportedly set to join the Washington Wizards, the Milwaukee Bucks now have another hole to fill within their roster.

Shortly after Friday’s free agency window opened for the masses, the Bucks lost Wesley Matthews, who is reportedly packing his things and heading to Los Angeles on a one year worth $3.6 million.

The Bucks are now down two rotational pieces just hours into free agency and remain quiet themselves as other teams continue to make moves with each passing minute. Jon Horst undoubtedly has something up his sleeve, but now he has another job on the to-do list in finding a suitable backup big man to replace Robin Lopez.

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Stay tuned here at Behind the Buck Pass for the latest free agency signings and updates as the week progresses.

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