The Los Angeles Clippers have agreed with Michael Jordan and the Hornets to acquire Lance Stephenson. What exactly is Doc Rivers getting at with this move?
Initially, when Lance left Indiana, I thought that was a terrible decision on his part to leave the $40 million that Larry Bird offered him to go ball with the Hornets. That Pacers squad was definitely a championship caliber team and another year together, they may have done some real damage in the Eastern Conference again–despite Paul George’s injury.
It looks like that thought proved to be right since the Hornets really did not amount to much this past season. The Hornets finished in 11th place in the weak Eastern Conference and they actually did a worse job than the previous year when they finished in 7th and made it to the playoffs as the Bobcats. I guess Lance’s impact did not turn out to be much.
Now, Doc Rivers has acquired Lance and he will join the Clippers in L.A. Despite throwing away a 3-1 lead in the second round of the Western Conference Playoffs against the Houston Rockets, the Clippers seem to have a pretty stable foundation at the Staples Center, so for them to bring in a loose cannon in Lance definitely seems slightly unorthodox.
Lance Stephenson is definitely a good player; however, like many others in the league he can let you down and when he gets cold, its pretty much a wrap. The thing that would work in the Clippers’ benefit though, is the fact that Lance is a young player. Only 24 years old, he can definitely be modeled into the system that Doc Rivers wants. He can definitely shoot the ball and isn’t afraid to go to the rack for easy points; so, I would definitely be interesting to see how this move works out if it does go through.
Lance to the Clippers now sends Matt Barnes (who I think the Clippers are better without) and Spencer Hawes to Charolette. In the sense of attitude and ruggedness on the court, seems like a pretty even exchange for Lance and Matt.
Source: BSO
