Pooty Profile: Brook Lopez

Often while watching an NBA game, I find it interesting to focus on one player for 10-15 minutes at a time. Doesn't matter where the ball is or if the player has too much of an impact on the game. This weekend's player happened to be Brook Lopez.

Brook has always fascinated me as a basketball enthusiast. His quirky demeanor,
crazy sounding voice, low post skills and freaky neck hair has often made my eyes wander his way. Offensively, Brook is somewhat of an anomaly. He plays well with his back to the basket setting up on either side of the low post. On most possessions, he is a master of conserving energy (methodical as all hell) until the exact right moment where his body springs into action and he gets ready for an entry pass. After receiving the entry pass, he has an array of moves up his sleeves ranging from a fadaway jumper to a drop step baby hook. This burst of energy usually only lasts 4 seconds at a time. The rest of the shot clock is spent with Brook looking like my grandpa trying to shovel the driveway at 5:30 AM. On some occasions, I noticed him display characteristics to his twin Robin, as he would hound the offensive glass with much longer bursts of energy and he had a couple of put back slams that reminded me of a much nimbler player than the one I had viewed earlier. Defensively, Brook left much to be desired. He was often late helping out on ball screens and his rotation across the lane was boarderline snaillike. His 4 blocks were merely because of his height but I'll give him some props for Brook's timing. Reminded me more of "Tim Duncan blocks" where he more or less outsmarts the offensive player into thinking that the ultra-methodical center will not be able to position himself quickly enough to send the shot in the other direction. Looking back on what I wrote, it sounds like I don't think highly of Lopez. That couldn't be farther from the truth. Part of basketball involves being the oddball of the group. Every player is not the same, and sometimes having a sloth in a horserace can be beneficial. Brook notices openings that might be lost to the quicker players and is able to slip through these openings resulting in a decent fg% and high point total, especially for a rookie. It is yet to be seen if he has the ability to make his teammates better. Ah yes, the unmeasurable big man stat that only Tim Duncan seems to truly pwn other centers at is impossible to see with the naked eye and requires years of analysis. Who knows what the future will hold for the Stanford grad. I don't imagine that he'll win any league MVP's anytime soon like the aformentioned Duncan, but don't put a few all-star appearances beyond Brook
and maybe a career 20ppg 10rbpg 2bl average.