Lance Stephenson: No Regrets Attitude Good But Dangerous

“I love this system. I love my coaches. I love my teammates. Some people come into systems and fit right in. Some people it takes time. I feel like with me I’m going to take time.”

Lance Stephenson is a man of no regrets.

And it’s for that reason that Stephenson, under contract until at least the end of next season, could be the Charlotte Hornets‘ messiah, but just as easily, their extended nightmare.

It all depends on his mindset moving forward.

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The Hornets, in their first season with their new-but-retro brand, have been underwhelming, even for Charlotte basketball standards. Sure, they aren’t sitting dead-last with just seven wins, or even 21 wins, but for a team that was projected to be a top-five seed in the supposedly revived Eastern Conference, 32-42 isn’t anything to smile about.

Really, it seems that the Hornets did a complete 180-turn from last season to this; 2013-14 saw an underdog Charlotte team stand behind its new star center, rookie head coach, and tough defensive mentality to come storming out of the post-All-Star-break gates and grab — not the eighth — but seventh spot in the Eastern Conference.

Now, somehow, after upgrading (on paper) their bench with the additions of Marvin Williams and Brian Roberts, as well as their starting lineup with highly regarded free agent Lance Stephenson, the Hornets fell off the postseason map, and now face an absolute best-case scenario of a 40-42 season.

The Hornets have sucked, and unfortunately, Lance Stephenson has been worse. So naturally, fans are quick to point to him for the mountain of losses.

But, as Monday’s home loss to the Boston Celtics– in which Stephenson received the first DNP-CD (Did Not Play – Coach’s Decision) of his career — showed us, the issues extend much deeper than one man, a man who regularly plays 26.4 minutes per game.

The media spoke with Stephenson after the game, and according to NBA.com, asked whether or not he regretted his decision to join Charlotte. Yet, even after all the bad that this year has brought Stephenson, he affirmed that signing in the Queen City was still the right choice:

“I love this system. I love my coaches. I love my teammates. Some people come into systems and fit right in. Some people it takes time. I feel like with me I’m going to take time.”

In part, what Stephenson said is true. It’s not easy for a player to seamlessly transition from a system — one that he’d been playing under his entire career, mind you — to a completely new one. That is especially so when the new ‘system’ consists of heavy isolation sets and not much off-ball movement.

Steve Clifford’s defense has always been highly regarded, but Charlotte’s system doesn’t have a ton of room for improvisation. Each play is designed to get a shot for a specific player. There are off-ball screens, sure, and entry passes are always followed by baseline cuts and perimeter rotations, but it’s just not flexible like some of the league’s better attacks.

This has hurt Stephenson, unfortunately. Indiana coach Frank Vogel is excellent on both ends of the floor, and he knew how to get his hybrid wing quick looks in the beginning of the game to get him going.

Stephenson is interesting in that sense: he needs to be very involved early on — almost to the point where he is the focal point — but once he gets a few cheap points in the paint, he can be very effective without the ball for the rest of the game. The David West/Lance Stephenson dynamic was excellent for Indiana, and Charlotte lacks that type of playmaker in their lineup this year.

It’s good that Stephenson has faith in his system, and it’s encouraging that he isn’t complaining (especially after Clifford called out Lance to the media in the beginning of the season), but it’s important that he doesn’t develop a complacency, if you will, towards his season-long lackluster play.

He’s had a history of attitude problems, and his body language, even in the earlier part of this season, often showed his frustration. While it’s important not to pout, getting energized and having some emotion on the court shows that he cares. When he’s open and gets looked off, it’s okay to be frustrated. It shows that he has confidence in his own ability.

Confidence is key in basketball, and a lack of it leads to overthinking, second-guessing, and hesitancy. Stephenson, for months, has been playing “I-dont-want-to-hurt-the-team” basketball, but he needs to understand that the team is in need of his contributions.

Fortunately, there’s still hope that Stephenson and the Hornets mend their poor chemistry and find that sweet spot. It likely won’t be this season, as it seems Steve Clifford has all-but completely lost faith in the $27 (but maybe $18) million dollar man. Still, a summer of hard work, conditioning, and preseason basketball could do wonders for Lance.

He’s proved himself to be the kind of guy that has thrived with a chip on his shoulder. He can’t, and shouldn’t wipe this season from his memory, but rather use it constructively, studying himself and figuring out why the drop-off occurred.

If Lance Stephenson isn’t ready to quit on the Hornets, there’s no reason they should be ready to quit on him.

Next: NBA: 50 Greatest Players Of All Time

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Lance Stephenson: ‘No Regrets’ Attitude Encouraging But Dangerous

By Jon Shames | Apr 3, 2015

“I love this system. I love my coaches. I love my teammates. Some people come into systems and fit right in. Some people it takes time. I feel like with me I’m going to take time.”

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