LA Clippers: Landry Shamet is the X-factor

LA Clippers guard Landry Shamet is still recovering from a grade 2 ankle sprain but could be the X-factor later in the season.

The LA Clippers are winning and are doing so without one of their best shooters. It’s something worth noting the day after they dropped 150 points for the second time this season. Landry Shamet was injured during a win against Toronto Raptors on November 11th and has not played since with a grade 2 ankle sprain.

The LA Clippers are one of the deepest teams in the league and while they are able to withstand an injury to Landry Shamet, it does make it harder to get continuity with the new pieces added during the off-season. While Shamet is a bit up and down this year, he will be crucial to helping spread the floor and give the team another wrinkle to an already loaded team.

The Clippers are a deep team and they have wings that can spot up and shoot but Shamet is one of those elite types of shooters when paired with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George is just going to be a headache. He is only in his second year but if he can shoot like he did last year, the offense will just be that much more dangerous.

Shamet, a point guard his senior year at Wichita State, can facilitate and if the team does not pick up another facilitating guard, they should try to lean on Shamet. He can shoot similar to a J.J. Redick with added length which helps on the defensive end of the floor. He has good court awareness but needs the reps with the team to really build on his playmaking.

Coming over last year in a trade with the Philadelphia 76ers, Shamet looks to be a steal of said trade. Elite shooting is at a premium and while Tobias Harris was not in the team’s long-term plans, getting a player back of Shamet’s potential is not talked about enough. The Clippers, 21 games in an 82 game season, will need time to gel. And while missing time isn’t ideal it should give Shamet time to fully heal from the sprain as well as some other nagging injuries.

Before the injury, Shamet was only shooting 36% from deep and while that is the league average, it did look like he was dealing with smaller injuries. He did finish last year shooting 45% for the Clippers after the trade, and if he can get over 40% again, it will totally change how teams defend with him on the court. He needs to be accounted for when he is out on the floor and he can make some timely shots.

The LA Clippers have two superstars but role players are important during the regular season and even more important during the playoffs. He is a player that can have a huge game while being efficient with his shot, exactly what George or Kawhi could use especially out of double teams. While there is no official timetable for his return, a 6-8 week recovery seems about right.

This team has so many moving parts that are just trying to get everyone on the same page. Maybe it will be helpful to let them figure out how to play with each other and Shamet can be molded to fit into the system when he comes back. The team shouldn’t rush him back, it’s not worth re-injuring the ankle and having to deal with it throughout the year. Shamet is more than just a role player, he’s an X-factor that can deflate teams with the deep ball as if teams didn’t need someone else to worry about.