Sports Illustrated is once again ranking the top 100 players in the NBA. On the first day, only two LA Clippers appeared.
You may or may not recall my piece earlier in the offseason predicting the landing spots of the LA Clippers in the Sports Illustrated top 100. With the first 50 players revealed this week, we look back at predictions and analyse where the Clippers landed.
I predicted that Danilo Gallinari would fall in the early 50s, DeAndre Jordan would land at number 20, and Blake Griffin would be a top 15 talent.
Lou Williams
Lou Williams, who I did not predict to find a home in the top 100, lands at number 93 this year. Rob Mahoney stated that Sweet Lou is a highly effective pick and roll threat as well as a born scorer.
"“Part of the appeal is that nothing needs to be built around him. Possession of the ball and a few seconds to spare is usually enough; Williams is so crafty at dancing his way into scoring opportunities that years of scouting reports have done little to stop him.”"
Lou fell at number 92 in 2016 and at 80 in 2014. This is excellent news for the Clippers if they plan to hold on to the scoring threat, but perhaps even better if the Clippers are trying to gauge his trade stock for a mid-season trade. If you had to guess where Lou would land, it would likely be in the 90s, so this feels good.
Patrick Beverley
Was I way off or what? Patrick Beverely lands at number 90 this year. It seems his defensive ability was a big factor in his placing on the list, per Golliver:
"“Defense, of course, is where the 29-year-old Beverley first made his name and where he continues to shine brightest. Last season, he ranked second among point guards in Defensive Real Plus-Minus and earned All-Defensive First-Team honors.”"
This is Pat’s debut on the top 100 list and is certainly good news for both Beverley himself and Clipper fans. If Beverley has a breakout season in more of a spotlight role, who knows how high he could climb on next year’s list.
For those keeping score, that leaves several prominent Clippers on the board. Unless Danilo Gallinari fell right out of the top 100 altogether, he will be a top 50 player. Blake and DeAndre, meanwhile, don’t figure to feature until later in the week when the upper echelon is revealed.
Elsewhere, former Clipper J.J. Redick found his way to number 59. Check back later this week for analysis of the remaining Clippers on the list.