Los Angeles Clippers: Lance Stephenson’s Impact

By Connor Aylward
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Updated: June 17, 2015

Monday night the Los Angeles Clippers rumors began to spread about a trade with the Charlotte Hornets. Just hours later the rumors were over and the Clippers acquired a high reward-low risk trade that moved emotional Small Forward Matt Barnes and underachieving big man Spencer Hawes just one year after he signed on with Los Angeles for the 24-year-old Cincinnati Bearcat Lance Stephenson.

Stephenson, coming off a disappointing first season with the Hornets is expecting to fit well into the Clippers guard/wing rotation. Stephenson’s ability to handle the basketball as well as create his own shot is something that has eluded the Clippers wings for years now and Doc Rivers is hoping Stephenson can shake off the cobwebs and return to a form similar to what Stephenson showed in Indiana for the 2013-14 season. While we’re discussing Stephenson’s stats let’s take a look at how they dipped in his one year in Charlotte before we discuss why they might have dipped:

	Minutes	Points	Assists	Rebounds
13’-14’ – Pacers	35.3 mpg	13.8 ppg	4.6 apg	7.2 rpg
14’-15’ – Hornets	25.8 mpg	8.2 ppg	3.9 apg	4.5 rpg

Looking at Stephenson’s stats the obvious answer would be that his minutes fell so his numbers declined, it is not that simple however. Shortly after his arrival in Charlotte reports of Stephenson becoming unsettled began to surface. His disapproval of the team’s system, and the way point guard Kemba Walker controlled the pace and offense irked Stephenson according to many reports. Consequently Stephenson’s field goal and three-point percentages plummeted from 49% and 35% respectively in Indiana to 37% and a league low 17% in Charlotte.

So which Lance Stephenson should Clippers fans expect? According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports the Clippers will use Stephenson as the primary ball handler when All-Star Chris Paul is off the court, as this would address Stephenson’s issue with not being in control in Charlotte. This is a role similar to what he played for the Pacers although whether Stephenson will start or not for the Clippers remains to be seen as there is a rather large opening at Small Forward which Los Angeles needs to fill with the departure of Matt Barnes.

While it may seem the Clippers left themselves in a difficult spot if DeAndre Jordan leaves, having traded the only other Center on the roster with starting experience in Spencer Hawes, this trade did create some benefits for Los Angeles in terms of cap space available. Hawes has three years with $17 million and change due to him on his contract while Barnes will be receiving $3.5 million on the last year of his contract. This is where Stephenson becomes a high reward-low risk player as he is due $9 million next season and then has a team option for the 16’-17’ season for $9.4 million that the Clippers can decide upon at the end of next season.

With a barren group of big men behind Blake Griffin and a hopefully returning DeAndre Jordan and an empty Small Forward slot plenty more moves seem to be on the horizon for Los Angeles still. The addition of an immense talent like Lance Stephenson with the cap relief he provides was a win-win for the Clippers on Monday night. Let’s hope Rivers continues this mini-rebuild for the Clippers with moves similar to what fans saw on Monday, because high reward-low risk is always a win-win. Go Clips Go!

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