As the Dallas Mavericks climbed to the top of the Western Conference last season and made the NBA Finals, they seemed content with Derrick Jones Jr. signing with the LA Clippers. They understood the type of opportunity he was chasing and that a larger role was something the coaches could not offer.
Ultimately, the Mavericks' front office slept soundly, given Naji Marshall, a six-foot-six, 220-pound alien, was eager to fill in. In fact, Marshall's offensive statistics in his first season with Dallas were better than any individual season of Jones Jr.'s career.
By landing Marshall, Dallas was unhinged when Jones Jr. made his choice. He was a replaceable producer in the playoffs and fell off significantly in the NBA Finals, where he averaged 6.6 points and 2.8 rebounds, shooting 43.3% from the field and 25.0% from three.
The Clippers saw Jones Jr. as a defensive upgrade from Paul George and signed him without thinking much of his five-game averages against the Boston Celtics. His first season under contract in LA was great, but his shot was completely broken in the playoffs.
LA is now second-guessing paying the flying sorcerer $30 million over three seasons, as they are the latest witnesses to his postseason chronicles.
Derrick Jones Jr. was a part of the bunch of LA Clippers that disappointed fans against the Denver Nuggets
For seven games, Derrick Jones Jr. stood unfazed by Jamal Murray's sweet handle and electric flow. He was targeted early, and the former Kentucky guard found out Jones Jr. was made of the toughest type of steel that is found.
However, the same Jones Jr. who averaged 10.1 points in the regular season had five single-digit scoring games in the playoffs. He did not post more than 12 points, and that was in game seven, where head coach Tyronn Lue made a season-costing mistake by starting him over Nicolas Batum.
Furthermore, 'Airplane Mode' shot a field goal percentage of 43.8 on the series with a three-point percentage of 30.0.
Other guys who played significantly more minutes, such as James Harden, were a bigger part of the problem. However, Jones Jr. was still in Tyronn Lue's tight playoff rotation and was a destructive component to the team's four losses to the Denver Nuggets.
The veteran wing took 129 minutes against the Nuggets to reveal how detrimental he can be when his lockdown defense is the only thing going right.