The LA Clippers sit at 17-6 and hold second place in the Western Conference. Having won 8 of their last 10 games, there’s not a whole lot that fans have to be upset about.
Kawhi Leonard is playing in back-to-backs and is putting up MVP numbers. Paul George is focused on his game and is playing at an MVP level as well. The roster seems happy and Ty Lue seems like he was the perfect choice as the head coach.
That being said, there are still some concerns that the team will need to address.
Here are the three biggest concerns for the LA Clippers so far this season.
1. Can the bench guards deliver for the LA Clippers?
Between Reggie Jackson, Lou Williams, and Luke Kennard, the LA Clippers just haven’t gotten the needed production out of their bench guards.
Not even sixth months removed from finishing third in Sixth Man of the Year voting, Lou Williams is putting up just 9.4 points a game on 39% shooting. He’s also down to just 3.0 assists per game. Granted, his usage rate is down, especially given how Coach Lue is staggering his stars but Lou just hasn’t looked the same.
Luke Kennard, fresh off a new contract, hasn’t really impressed either in his inaugural season with the Clippers. He looks timid at times despite shooting a career-high 44.6% from deep. The team has implored him to shoot more but it just hasn’t happened yet. It may just be a comfort thing having just joined this team but he needs to get over it.
Reggie Jackson has been good as of late, especially since he took over starting duties for the injured Patrick Beverley but can he consistently do that? Jackson was at one point the odd man out of the rotation and if he gets too shot happy when Bev returns, could see himself plopped at the end of the bench again.
The Clips need something out of at least one of these guys with Kennard being the most concerning of the three. Can something change with their backup guard rotation before the season ends? We’ll see.