Rainyy wrote:I am probably on a more extreme end of the spectrum in regards to evaluating Lopez - at least in relation to this board. But I nonetheless would not hold it against someone to dislike Lopez as a player or want him off the team. I think even the biggest Lopez supporters need to acknowledge the problems defending the PnR and his inconsistent rebounding.
That said, while there is a large spectrum of reasonable opinions about Lopez, there are some opinions which that fall outside of that spectrum. Prok was on a crusade Lopez and it consistently showed. That would be less of a problem if he didn't drag much of the board with him.
It is very sad that a common belief on this board has been that Lopez is a "net negative player" or that he's a zero impact player - i.e. his defense/rebounding cancel out his offense. I don't think any of these beliefs are grounded in fact, yet they were widely tolerated here.
The Nets have been a .500 team in March. They are finally healthy and their rookie coach is figuring out how to play. They are .500 despite carrying two rookies in the starting lineup (I'm counting RHJ since he barely played last season), a washed-up veteran in Foye, and a bench filled with cheap minimum contracts and second round picks.
At some point people have to realize that a .500 record - or even .100 for that matter - would be physically impossible if Lopez had no overall positive impact on the team. Unless you want to argue that Randy Foye, etc. are amazing players.
Prok's bias is finally showing now. Part of the reason I think he refused to see Lin as a difference maker was in an effort to scapegoat Lopez. If the difference between Dinwiddie and Lin was small, then that might downplay the severity of the point guard problem as it pertains to our record.
Gfycat Video - Click to Play
Besides the bold statement I actually agree with you.
