Bennedict Mathurin landed on the LA Clippers, and a few games into his tenure, a soon-to-arrive breakout was the narrative everyone stood behind. To be fair, Mathurin was going for 20 points like it was nothing, and even went as far as tying his career-high of 38 in his home debut. However, the 23-year-old has officially cooled off, and the truth regarding his skill-set is that he is far from ready for the next step in his career because of his tunnel-vision offensive approach.
For context purposes, over the Clippers’ last three contests, Mathurin has shot a combined 14-40 from the field and 0-9 from beyond the arc, while also accumulating 11 turnovers. He’s still good at crashing the glass and getting to the line, but in general, he struggles in using his peripherals to find open teammates when attacking.
This has led to careless mistakes, poor shot selection, and easy opportunities for opponents to build on.
Until Bennedict Mathurin masters his playmaking, he will not reach his goals
Every star in the NBA has some sort of passing skill set in their game. Even if it’s average, these guys know how to read defenses, understand the drive-and-kick method, and have a sixth sense for finding the open man.
Bennedict Mathurin, on the other hand, simply locks eyes with the iron, and from that point onwards, the only goal on his mind is to get a bucket; passing the rock has seemed like the last resort, and though his ideology sometimes works out, more often than not, opponents are easily able to force a stop.
This explains why he has logged 21 assists and 20 turnovers as an LA Clipper, which is atrocious.
If Mathurin is hungry for a breakout and to ultimately cement himself as a building block on the Clippers, he will have to improve his passing IQ. He cannot have such a massive weakness that is exposed on a nightly basis.
He has the film room to help him behind the scenes, and on the court, Mathurin can depend on Darius Garland, Kawhi Leonard, and even Kris Dunn for assistance, as they’ve all evolved into excellent playmakers.
That said, the Clippers and their fans must stomp on the brakes and place a hold on high trajectories for Mathurin in the near future. He has potential, yes, but he has a ton of growth to make before the star phase of his career begins.