55 shots from 8ft and beyond (30%) 139 shots from inside the restricted area (63% which is very respectable). He's averaging 3.1 second chance points per game (9.8 total PPG), good for 18th in the NBA, and 3.9 offensive rebounds (4th in the NBA) Aside: LA is averaging 3.6 second chance PPG (9th in the NBA) and 2.4 offensive rebounds as well (34th in the NBA) Interesting to me, LA's increase in rebound has come solely on the defensive end, having improved from 6.7 to 8.5 RPG. I suppose it shouldn't surprise me considering where he shoots from most of the time. The number of shot attempts by opponents has increase by 5 FGA PG. It may be a valid argument to suggest his increased rebounding has come from the increased pace and more opponent FG attempts, but we've all watch the games and know that isn't really the case.
Not sure why people are so surprised by Lopez's efficiency on offense. He averaged more points in fewer minutes last year and his FG% was almost as good (.534 last year vs. .544 this year). He posted a PER = 18.9 as a 24-year old starting center. You don't put up that kind of PER if you suck on offense. Really, the only difference between his offensive game last year and this is he's taking fewer FGA/36 because he's surrounded by better scorers this year. If you look as his shooting percentages they are very similar this year to last. BNM
I think a lot of us who are surprised were influenced by folks who said that last year was a fluke for Robin, and that his poor performance for Phoenix was more like what we'd get... you know, the realists.
Yeah, because young big men never improve. They all come into the league as finished products and no amount of coaching and hard work can save them from their predetermined destiny. BNM
Good stats ya'll! is the 30% makes or just attempted from that area? I'm guessing the former, but I want to make sure.
I think you are spot on. The surprised folks seemed to put way to much emphasis on his Phx years, and discount his previous season which was really the best barometer to make predictions from. I saw a healthy center that played a full 82 games last season as a starter (injuries behind him), had amazing size, was very skilled at offensive rebounds, could hit free throws, and had a little bit of offense in him. And I was in the "LA must have a true center to compliment his game" camp. And I saw Lopez coming to a team that had a much better starting 4 with stronger chemistry than he had in NO. Anderson was also a stretch PF, so another year of experience with a player similar to LA seemed natural to assume he would be a decent fit. Given all that before he even started training camp, I'm not at all surprised. I'm just as excited as ever though that what I had hoped for is what I also get to see every night from him. He is really a great, smart, team player that just works his tail off and doesn't care about his stats, just winning games. LA said that about Robin on media day, and it would be nice if fans wouldn't down play or try to discredit what players say. This isn't just some other team with NBA player. This is an amazing Portland team with high character guys who play the game the right way.
