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Lopez Looking To Prove Suns Right


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Lopez Looking To Prove Suns Right

"Disney aficionado and Suns center Robin Lopez took the alias of an old Mickey Mouse running mate, Eega Beeva, as his Twitter handle this summer, but Lopez and those around him say patience is what will define his transition from rookie to regular.

 

Eega Beeva debuted in the 1947 comic book, "The Man of Tomorrow," a fitting title for the Suns' only remaining true center after Shaquille O'Neal was traded to Cleveland. But as much as Lopez touts how he is learning to be patient in the post and as much as the Suns are willing to be patient with a 21-year-old 7-footer, tomorrow is today. The Suns need last year's No. 15 pick to be a reliable big man this season.

 

Lopez's role was expected to be larger last season when the Suns figured he would start for O'Neal in at least 20 games. But O'Neal stayed healthy, and Lopez fell out of the rotation often but finished the season well. Lopez will be a regular, if not a starter, this season and can begin to show he is ready with the summer Suns' five-game slate in Las Vegas, where they play Dallas at 3 p.m. Monday.

 

"Them making that trade, it shows that they have some faith in me," Lopez said. "That makes me feel a lot more confident and makes me want to work that much harder to make sure they're not proven wrong."

 

Lopez played 60 games as a rookie but averaged 10 minutes with a bump in April, when he averaged 16.7 minutes, 5.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks.

 

"At the end, I think he felt like he really belonged," Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. "He's going to help mostly in the area of defense. He's got to be able to protect the basket for us. He'll do a good job in the screen and roll with showing. Then he'll get out and run. He's very athletic, and he's got to use it to his advantage."

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http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/2009/07/12/20090712spt-sunslopez.html

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