Thomas Robinson on lack of minutes: 'it's BS'
The Brooklyn Nets currently hold the fourth worst record in the NBA, and with just five games left on the schedule, Thomas Robinson wants some more playing time.
"It's about time I become a 20-plus minute player," Robinson said early this week, per The Brooklyn Game. "I haven't played over 13 minutes my whole career. To me, it's BS. But I'm trying to put that out there that it's about time I become a 20-minute plus player."
Robinson, currently in his fourth NBA season for his fifth NBA team, has averaged 13.6 minutes over his career after being drafted with the fifth overall pick out of Kansas in the 2012 draft.
Will publicly voicing that he thinks he should see more time on the floor magically open the gates to a starting role? Not a chance. But with the recent news that the Nets have decided to shutdown frontcourt starters Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young, Robinson has already seen more time on the floor, and he has made the most of it.
In the past four games (three without Young, two without Lopez), Robinson has averaged 27.2 minutes per game, putting up 13.3 points and 12.8 rebounds, well above his career averages of 3.9 points and 4.9 rebounds.
But playing at a high level seemingly isn't gratifying enough for the fourth-year forward. Despite his uptick in minutes and production, Robinson wants to make it known that he is capable of playing at a high level when given the opportunity.
"Like I said, it's the end of the season, and the minutes are there, but there's not one (game) I played 20 minutes-plus and I not have a double-double, or whatever the case may be," Robinson told The Brooklyn Game. "I want to win, and I will contribute to winning once we recycle things or do whatever the organization is doing, but myself personally, I think that going into this summer, that's what I want anybody to know. That I deserve to play 20-plus minutes."
He has the option to opt out of his contract this summer, but says he wants to stay loyal to the Nets.
"I want to stay in Brooklyn," he told The Brooklyn Game. "I’ve been moving the last four years. I don’t want to go anywhere. I just want to be an established player here, and I want to play. I’m not starting anything, I’m not saying I deserve to play or that I have the right to play, I just want to play."
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