Usually, when a player on the LA Clippers is trending on X(formerly Twitter), it is Kawhi Leonard or James Harden. If it is not either of the superstar duo, the spotlight will go to Ivica Zubac for a monster stat line. However, for the first time this season, Brook Lopez had the sports world talking about him, proving that the starting spot was all he needed.
In 33 minutes, the veteran big man recorded 31 points, five rebounds, and two blocks, making a career-high nine three-pointers.
Keep in mind, this is the same player who was out of the rotation before Ivica Zubac left, and did not return, in the ‘Battle of L.A.’ with a relatively severe ankle injury.
Thus, Lopez originally made the Milwaukee Bucks seem silly for starting him in 80 games last season, but after what he did in the 119-103 win versus the Portland Trail Blazers, maybe he is a player who is only a natural in a specific spot within the rotation.
Ivica Zubac’s return should not hinder Brook Lopez’s starting status
In every game, Brook Lopez has been the primary center, and the LA Clippers have won. That is three wins in a row, a feat the Clippers had not accomplished the entire season.
Moreover, is Lopez’s late bloom enough for Tyronn Lue to start him after Ivica Zubac potentially returns in under three weeks? Long story short, yes; the one-time all-star maximized a rare opportunity non-rotational players do not receive in being catapulted into the primary unit in the blink of an eye.
However, Lopez’s three-point shooting was not everything. It was how he did against Alperen Sengun, the next big-man superstar and the Portland Trail Blazers’ center for the future, Donovan Clingan.
He grabbed 11 total rebounds and blocked four shots in both games, while impacting Sengun’s three turnovers and Clingan’s minimal five shot attempts, where he averages nearly eight on the year.
The Clippers still need Ivica Zubac to start, so Lue should put an end to the anticipation from fans on the twin-tower starting lineup and give it a try when the Croatian Star has fully recovered.
Lopez’s recent dominance also allows Zubac to rest in a peaceful state, and gives the coaching staff the option to use a minutes restriction once he is back, as the Clippers are set with the three-point shooting center thriving in the front-court.