Robin Lopez is the only veteran left from last season's Bulls. Rajon Rondo, Jimmy Butler, Dwyane Wade, they are gone. Some veterans like to spend their last years of playing time on contenders so they can get the last chance at a ring. Not Lopez. The 10-year player is enjoying the ride along the youngsters in Chicago. Besides him, the only player on the roster with five or more seasons of NBA experience is Quincy Pondexter. The rest are rookies and promising second and third-year players.

Lopez spoke to Basketball Insiders about his life around the young players:

“There’s just a positive atmosphere on this team. I’ve been on some really bad teams where it’s been kind of a toxic environment, but that’s not a situation we have here right now. I mean, I’m in a positive situation, I’m playing basketball for a living, playing good minutes, and I’ve got a lot of great guys on this team, so right now I’m really just enjoying myself.”

The Bulls have shown improvement after Nikola Mirotic returned from injury, Kris Dunn gained some confidence, and rookie Lauri Markannen established himself as a legitimate shooting threat. About playing with low-experienced players, Lopez said:

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“The young guys have been so great. I mean obviously, a lot of guys on this team don’t have large track records, so they’re coming out this season, they’re playing to establish themselves, and I love that everybody’s doing it within a team setting. People are playing pretty freely right now. We’re playing a lot more freely than we were earlier in the season, and you know winning games will do that, and experience will do that. It’s fantastic. It really is a lot of fun.”

As the oldest player on a team with no players over 30 years old, Lopez spoke about his role:

“I’m just trying to provide a steady presence, a little bit of wisdom, what little wisdom I have, and go game by game.”

Young teams always need a veteran in the locker room. Lopez probably did not expect to be the only veteran presence on a team this early in his career, but it is safe to say he is sticking to his role and doing it well.