Brook Lopez Continues to Struggle

Early on in the season we are not season the Brook Lopez we are used to seeing. The one that can get 20+ points on 50 percent shooting. We are seeing a very frustrated Lopez that is struggling to find his offense and that’s sad for Nets fans to have to see.

It’s still early but Lopez has yet to look very good this season. He’s had a couple of good games but other than that it’s been all struggles for the former All-Star big man. Lopez was the guy that the past couple years the Nets built their offense around. That was their identity in year one in Brooklyn. Get the ball down to Brook and let him go to work. That hasn’t worked out so well this season.

Although, the Nets have been getting the ball down low to Lopez, he hasn’t been able to convert on shot attempts we’re used to see him making. Lopez is coming off of foot surgery but this is the worse I’ve seen him play in his entire career. He’s not a dominate force in the post as he once was.

You can visibly see during games that Lopez is frustrated with himself of his play. Constantly shaking his head after he misses shots he know he should make. Lopez has been given the label of being “soft”. He’s not as aggressive as he should be. When you’re seven-foot tall and weigh around 275 pounds you should be able to dominate in the paint. That hasn’t been the case this season.

The biggest thing for Lopez is his rebounding. He’s never been a good rebounder at all. After 10 games he’s averaging under 5 rebounds a game which is absolutely horrendous for a seven-footer. He lacks the ability to be physical down low, to fight for rebounds and be aggressive. He’s the total opposite of his teammate Kevin Garnett. Garnett will do whatever it takes to give it his all on the court.

Nov 5, 2014; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez (11) reacts against the Minnesota Timberwolves during the fourth quarter at the Barclays Center. The Timberwolves defeated the Nets 98-91. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

I personally do not expect Lopez to struggle throughout the entire season. He is too talented offensively for this to go on all season. When he’s on, Lopez is easily the top offensive center in the game. There aren’t many centers that can compare to him offensively. You  could maybe throw in DeMarcus Cousins or Al Jefferson but Lopez, in my opinion, is still the best offensive center in the game today.

Who knows what the reasons for his struggles are early on this season. It could be coming off of foot furgery. It could losing those 15 extra pounds this offseason. A lot of Nets fans are getting impatient with him. Many fans want him gone due to his struggles. I’m not on board with trading Lopez right now. He has struggled but I wouldn’t risk trading on of the best centers in the league.

Lopez’s numbers early on this season are very un-Lopez type numbers. He’s averaging 15 points, 4.8 rebounds and shooting 46.9 percent from the floor. You certainly don’t expect this to be a season-long struggle for the Nets big man and the Nets certainly hope he improves because he is very important to their success.

Nets head coach Lionel Hollins has gone as far as benching Lopez in numerous fourth quarters this season. Lopez is averaging 27 minutes per game. If you want to compare, Nets rookie Bojan Bogdanovic is averaging 29 minutes per game. Hollins won’t shy away from sitting you on the bench if you struggle.

All-in-all it’s been a tough start to the season for Lopez but don’t expect this struggle to continue. I expect Brook to take it upon himself to turn his season around.