Clippers: Checking in on Lance Stephenson in Memphis

It’s been almost two weeks since the trade deadline when the Los Angeles Clippers acquired Jeff Green. Let’s check in on the always interesting Lance Stephenson, now guard of the Memphis Grizzlies.

Six games have gone by since the trade deadline. You probably feel a way about Jeff Green with the Los Angeles Clippers by now: he’s played fantastic against bad teams and hilariously bad against good teams, aka the Jefe experience. But if you’re anything like myself, you’ve had to have given a peak over to Memphis to see how good ol’ Lance Stepheson is doing.

To put it simply, he’s better off than he was in Los Angeles, and it’s nearing excruciating to watch as Lance performs with the freedom Doc Rivers restricted from the guard with the Clippers.

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Stylistically, nothing’s changed. Lance’s the same Lance, doing the silly things that have made him quite the laughing stock amidst his fall from relativity and enough on the good side to remind you a decent NBA player is hidden deep within the theatrics. Over dribbling. Showboating. Ferocity. Overdoing. The whole shebang. Except there’s freedom in his actions, and the fear of overstepping Doc Rivers’ boundaries are completely gone.

Sure, Dave Joerger may not care much as he’s flirted with unemployment during his tenure with the Grizzlies and knows regardless of what Lance does (or doesn’t do), he’s well off — at best, a firing leads to him returning home to Minnesota to coach the best NBA prospect since LeBron James in Karl-Anthony Towns. But he seems full aware of the obvious, that you won’t get the best out of Lance Stephenson if the guard isn’t allowed to freelance from time to time.

That’s what made Lance a thing in Indiana. And when Lance stepped too far out of line, Frank Vogel and company were there to reign him in. In Los Angeles, that wasn’t an option, at least after the honeymoon period as Lance entered the season starting at small forward. The fit made sense: Lance could do a little bit of everything, making life a bit easier for those around him in hopes those around him could inspire Lance to be the guy that made a difference in Indiana. That wasn’t exactly the case but the advanced metrics showed having Lance there was working.

Then Doc benched him, blaming his flaws and strengths are reason, replacing him with Paul Pierce, then Welsey Johnson, then Luc Mbah a Moute, which is hilarious considering the Clippers opted to trade Matt Barnes (and Hawes) for Lance.

The results of freedom in Memphis? In six games, Lance is averaging 11.8 points on 51% shooting, 4 rebounds, and 2.3 assist while sporting a PER of 17.8. The sample size is extremely small but something is there, a something Rivers wasn’t willing to unlock. Meanwhile, Rivers allowed Jamal Crawford to continue being a sub-400 shooter and Paul Pierce be an on-court albatross and a freedom Lance maybe could’ve thrived under.

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It’ll remain a point of conversation throughout the season, especially 1) as Jeff Green continues to be the frontman for mediocrity and 2) if the Grizzlies and Clippers meet in the Western Playoffs, Round 1, and Lance plays well and/or plays well enough to contribute to the Clippers’ early exit. And it’ll remain a point in the future if the first round pick Los Angeles sent to Memphis conveys into a player who contributes. It’d be Doc Rivers’ stint with the Clippers personified, giving up early on talent he’s unfamiliar with in favor for a guy he’s comfortable with.

We’ll continue to keep a keen eye on Lance in Memphis. Maybe the Clippers attempt to re-sign him next summer for cheap. Who knows, but my initial feel of the situation between Lance and LA is the Clippers made a mistake (and this mistake is also proof of the Clippers’ personnel issues outside of Paul-Redick-Griffin-Jordan). Maybe we’re right; maybe we’re wrong, but the former seems to be in my favor so far.

Next: Has Jamaal Charles Lost a Step?

Oh, and in case you were wondering, Jeff Green is averaging 9.7 points and has a PER of 9.1 with the Clippers. #FUN