Point Guards
The LA Clippers are admittedly a little thin on the number of true point guards on the roster — there are only two. However, with plenty of versatile players on the bench behind them, the Clippers should feel comfortable having a variety of guys handle the ball when these two are off the floor.
Patrick Beverley
Patrick Beverley wasn’t expected to come back to the LA Clippers. In fact, many of us expected the opposite — rumors suggested he was going to enjoy free agency, meeting with as many as five teams outside of the Clippers. And since those other teams could offer more money, hopes were slim that the heart and soul of the team would be making a return.
But alas, Beverley is back on a three-year, $40 million deal. And that’s a great thing, too.
Beverley is one of the hardest-playing guys in the NBA, never backing down from a challenge — even when the player he’s up against is a full foot taller than he and one of the greatest scorers in league history. He’s a pest on defense, one of the best perimeter defenders in the game, and with a much-improved three-point shot, he’s got serious two-way potential.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Of all the rookies the LA Clippers put on the floor this past season, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was far and away the most impressive one. And having just missed the cut for the NBA’s All-Rookie First Team, he’s going to come back with something to prove: He’s one of the best players from the 2018 class.
Already a gifted playmaker, Gilgeous-Alexander’s vision helped create plenty of open looks for his teammates last season. And when he wasn’t passing the ball, Shai was putting it in the hole. Whether he was driving and scoring or putting up shots from the perimeter, he was doing it efficiently, too.
From the All-Star break through the end of the regular season, Gilgeous-Alexander made 49.3 percent of his looks from the field and 43.8 percent from three-point range. That hot streak continued into the postseason as well, where he converted 46.7 percent of his attempts from the field and 50 percent from deep.
It’s a small sample size, but Gilgeous-Alexander visibly took a step forward after the Clippers traded Tobias Harris. If he can carry that momentum into his second season, he could be a candidate to be named Most Improved Player this time next year.