2 – No Rim Protection
To say the Clippers have no rim protection isn’t fair. Montrezl Harrell averaged 1.6 blocks a game and was certainly a presence in the block. In fact Harrell ranked 21st in the league in defended field goals attempted (DFGA) at 13.2. There is no denying the Harrell’s hustle.
At 6’8″ however he can be over-matched against some of the Associations even larger human beings. Which takes us to the interesting case of Ivica Zubac.
Zubac was a fan favorite during his time with the Los Angeles Lakers. The lovefest continued when he joined the Clippers. It’s easy to root for Zubac. He smiles easily, always looks to be trying his hardest and has a kinda of puppy-dog appeal to him.
Don’t deny it, you know what I mean.
It helps that he is 7’1″ with a 7’4″ wingspan and is only 22 years old. You would be forgiven if you thought he was older. It seems he has been around for a while. The 2019-20 season will be his fourth in the Association and it’s time for him to take that next step.
Zubac is not and will never be what most consider to be a modern NBA player. He doesn’t have range beyond the arc. He isn’t a great passer, averaging only 0.8 assists in his career. What he can do is rebound and defend. In the 2018-19 season for the Clippers he averaged 7.7 rebounds and almost one block a game in 20 minutes of action. Those are good numbers, but not enough going into 2019-20.
In the upcoming season Zubac will likely get the same amount of minutes as last year. What has to change is his production. If he can take the next step in his development and average 1.5 blocks per game along with 10 rebounds he would be the force the Clippers need.
Keep in mind that with Patrick Beverly, Paul George and Kawhi Leonard to get past before you get to Zubac his opportunities may be limited. But, players will get to him and when they do, will he be ready? If he can go into the new season focused on just rebounds and blocks, essentially improvements of 2.3 rebounds and 0.5 blocks a game, the Clippers defensive scheme looks all that more imposing.
What are the chances Zubac makes that jump in 2019-20? I’m going to put them at 60% meaning the risk of the Clippers having a rim-protection gap is 40%.