Milwaukee Bucks: Regrading Robin Lopez’s two-year deal from 2019

Reanalyzing Robin Lopez’s fit and role with the Milwaukee Bucks

As previously mentioned, Robin would immediately come in and give the Bucks a trustworthy big man to fill in for his brother when he needed a breather. There were never any concerns about him fitting in with the team or how he would adjust to primarily playing a bench role, as Lopez certainly had to have had some idea that would be the case when he signed.

On the floor, Robin proved to be a serviceable replacement for Brook when he was on the bench. Although he lacked the firepower offensively of his brother, Robin still played passable basketball with the occasion hook shot down in the post. Just like his brother did when he first came to town, Robin also tried to be a complementary piece to Giannis Antetokounmpo by expanding his range, shooting a career-high 1.6 attempts from deep per contest. Defensively, he gave Milwaukee yet another hulking presence at the rim that could block shots and haul in rebounds.

After three years as a key cog for the Bulls, Lopez’s role regressed mightily when he signed with the Bucks. He went from playing 25.4 minutes on average for Chicago in the previous three years to logging 14.5 minutes for Milwaukee. It was certainly a big change for Lopez, but once again, it was expected that he would take on a lesser role once he signed on with a team that already had a clear-cut starter, ironically being his brother.

After watching Lopez that season, it seems safe to say that he played his part as Milwaukee’s second-string center. His numbers were never the flashiest, but he provided an occasional boost on the offensive end while helping keep the Bucks’ league-leading defense as strong as ever when his brother, an All-Defensive honoree that season, was on the bench.