Expected Role
Even though he was a starter last season, Teodosic’s role on this year’s team is uncertain. He will have to compete with Beverley and Avery Bradley who are returning from injuries along with new additions Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jerome Robinson. Lou Williams is locked in the sixth man role, as well. This is a very crowded depth chart, to say the least. Someone has to go and unfortunately it might be Teodosic.
Offense
Teodosic is unquestionably the best playmaker on the team. He averaged 4.6 assists per game last season, which was the second-best average on the team. However, his statistics don’t entirely reflect Teodosic’s ability. He made plenty of highlight passes and more importantly was able to create open looks for his teammates whenever the Clippers needed a basket.
In addition to being a skilled distributor, Teodosic proved himself to be a reliable shooter. He only shot 28.6% from deep in December, but his shot greatly improved as the season moved along as he shot an impressive 43% from three after the All-Star Break.
He was a significantly better shooter on catch and shoot threes, as well. Teodosic shot 44.2% on catch and shoot threes and only 31.1% on pull up threes.
Teodosic clearly became more comfortable playing in the NBA in the second half of the season. His game improved as a whole after the break. He shot 39.2% from the field before the break and 46.6% after it. Moving forward, I expect Teodosic’s numbers to be on par with his second half averages. Even though he was 30 years old, he was still technically a rookie without NBA experience.
He finished last season shooting 41.9% from the field, 37.9% from three, and 84.8% from the free throw line while averaging 9.5 points per game.
Even though the Clippers have a surplus of guards, they do not have another player like Teodosic. His offensive game would be a great fit next to defensive-minded guards Avery Bradley and Patrick Beverley, in particular.
Defense
Although Teodosic performed well on offense last season, his defense was another story. He was typically not quick enough to keep up with opposing guards and was often targeted on by opposing offenses.
Teodosic allowed opponents to shoot 50% from the field against him. Opponents practically imposed their will against him. They were able to shoot 40.1% from three and an insane 55.8% from two with Teodosic as the opposing defender.
At age 31, it does not seem likely that his defense will improve, and if the team keeps Teodosic around it will be something they will have to live with.