Former Teammate Says Lopez Bros Ditched Practice for Disneyland

Some players miss practice because they partied too hard the night before.

The Lopez brothers missed practice in college so they could go to Disneyland.

David Pick of Basketball Insiders recently spoke to Anthony Goods, a former teammate of the brothers during their days at Stanford, about Brook and Robin Lopez, . He tells some hysterical, yet predictable stories about the twins that now play for the two NY basketball teams.

"What people don’t know about the Lopez twins, honestly, they’re little kids in seven-foot bodies," Goods told Basketball Insiders. "In college, Brook and Robin were really into cartoons and superheroes. Each player on our team had his own superhero nickname; mine was the ‘Black Panther."

"Brook’s nickname was ‘a**hole,'" Goods continued to tell Basketball Insiders. "Trent [Johnson] once kicked Brook out of practice, and said: ‘Hey a**hole, get the f*** out of my gym.’ Then Robin turned and said, ‘Don’t talk to my brother like that.’ Trent went off, he was like, ‘Get the f*** out too’, and kicked them both out."

At least they stick together. And now after being apart for seven years in the league, they're finally coming together, sorta, by playing in the same state and (essentially) the same city.

But maybe it's better off that they aren't on the same team. Just ask Goods, who described Stanford's team as a 'ticking time bomb' between the Lopez brothers, Landry Fields, Lawrence Hill, and Trent Johnson running the ship.

"That team, man – with Trent, Brook, Robin, Lawrence and Landry – was like a different movie," Goods said. "You had the twins; Landry was scared of Trent; and Lawrence was building computers, growing ant farms and had pet rats. It was crazy."

In March of 2008, Brook nailed a game-winning hook floater against Marquette. Funny enough, Trent Johnson had been kicked out before halftime.

"We played Marquette in Sweet 16, Trent got kicked out of that game, broke a TV in the locker room. We hit the game-winner, it was dope. Everyone was excited," Goods told Basketball Insiders with a smile on his face. The next morning while on the bus, Robin approached Brook asking to borrow $20, Pick writes. "What for?" said Brook, "We just got paid." Robin replied, "I know, but I spent $81 at the comic book store."

"Kids also waste money on Jordan sneakers. But the Lopez twins didn’t spend it like that; they were buying comic books," recalls Goods.

But like Goods mentions, kids waste money on a variety of things. The two were more like kids than young adults.

"Brook and Robin loved cartoons, comic books, Britney Spears and Michael Jackson. I remember, we had a serious game against UCLA, and when I came back to the locker room before our warmup, both of them were huddling around a laptop, giggling like girls watching old Simpson cartoons. I was like, ‘Yo, we got a game, bro. It’s a big one.'"

However, Brook and Robin become men once they step foot on the floor.

"That’s one thing about them, though: once it’s jump-ball, it’s like the switch flips and Brook and Robin turn into grown men, like animals," Goods said. "But off the floor, these dudes are kids. They’ll go back and forth cursing each other out. ‘You’re stupid. No, you’re stupid.’ Stuff like that."

This goes without saying. Brook, who averaged 16 points and 7 rebounds at Stanford, is coming off his best season in the NBA. He averaged 17 points and 7 rebounds, and won two consecutive Player of the Week awards in late March and early April.

Robin isn't bad himself. He just nabbed a two-year deal with the Knicks after averaging 9.3 points and 6.5 rebounds for the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2014-2015 season.

However, the twins' success on the court wasn't enough to get the out of trouble with coach Johnson, Goods explains as he tries to catch his breath while telling the story.

"So we’re all in the gym before practice, but neither of the twins show up. Trent sends managers to all the doors and said, ‘If the twins come, don’t let them in.’ But the twins never showed up," Goods said.

Johnson called for a team meeting, informing the guys that the "twins aren't going to be with us for a while." Johnson, whose top-dog word was rarely questioned, told the team why they brothers were in trouble after Lawrence Hill reluctantly asked.

"The twins," Johnson said, "went to Disneyland."

Does it get any more Lopez-bros than that? I highly doubt Brook would even dare to miss a Lionel Hollins-run practice for Disneyland. But then again, who knows.

Goods couldn't contain his laughter, Pick writes.

Between all the Lopez twins' antics with mascots, McDonalds, and so much more -- Good's actions during the interview display the one thing the twins have always been good for. Their kid-like attitude off the court always seems to make people laugh. How could you not?

The brothers will face each other for the first time of the year on December 4 at Madison Square Garden.

• Former Teammate Shares Lopez Twins Stories - David Pick - Basketball Insiders