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Los Angeles Clippers: Lance Stephenson Trade Makes Sense

By Cameron Stewart

Jan 28, 2015; San Antonio, TX, USA; Charlotte Hornets shooting guard Lance Stephenson (1) shoots the ball against the San Antonio Spurs during the second half at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 28, 2015; San Antonio, TX, USA; Charlotte Hornets shooting guard Lance Stephenson (1) shoots the ball against the San Antonio Spurs during the second half at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports /
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The NBA season may not have come to its conclusion yet, but Doc Rivers and the Los Angeles Clippers wasted no time making moves for the next season.

On Monday night, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports broke the news that the Clippers and Charlotte Hornets were discussing a trade centered around Lance Stephenson. The trade was completed and finalized just a few hours later.

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In order to acquire the enigmatic Stephenson, the Clippers traded Matt Barnes and Spencer Hawes.

Barnes started 74 games for the Clippers last season and was often given the task of defending the No. 1 wing option on other teams. Barnes is still a tough defender–that’s been his signature throughout his 12-year NBA career–but he’s lost a step and had battles with inconsistency this season.

Barnes is expected to be cut from the Hornets as his deal is only partially guaranteed and he can be released without paying him the full amount of his remaining $3.5 million for next season.

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Hawes was one of the more disappointing members of last year’s free agent class. After averaging 13.2 points and 8.3 rebounds while shooting 41.6% on three-point attempts with the Philadelphia 76ers and Cleveland Cavaliers in 2013-14, Hawes’ game fell off of a cliff.

He averaged 5.8 points and 3.5 rebounds on terrible shooting percentages and eventually lost his spot in the rotation to Glen Davis.

For the Clippers, acquiring Stephenson at the expense of losing Barnes and Hawes is a risk worth taking.

Like Hawes, Stephenson had a big contract season two years ago before playing dreadfully last season. Stephenson averaged 13.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 4.6 assists on a respectable 49/35/71 shooting percentage splits. At only age 23, Stephenson hit unrestricted free agency and signed with the Hornets on a three-year, $27 million deal.

During his lone season in Charlotte, Stephenson struggled to find his role in the offense and had one of the worst shooting seasons among guards in NBA history.

Stephenson’s historically terrible season led to him falling out of the starting lineup early in the season before falling out of the rotation completely in games later in the season.

Despite this, trading for Stephenson is the right move for the Clippers.

The Clippers are without a draft pick in the upcoming 2015 NBA Draft and find themselves over the salary cap even before adding on the max contract DeAndre Jordan is likely to receive from the Clippers when he hits free agency.

This lack of roster flexibility leaves little opportunity to improve a team that just isn’t a championship team as it’s currently constructed and is devoid of realistic trade assets.

Even the most pessimistic fan should be able to see the positives of this move. Of the players who switched teams in the deal, Stephenson is the most talented. Spencer Hawes and the remaining $17 million he’s owed over the next three seasons is now somebody else’s problem.

Matt Barnes will be 36 by the time the playoffs start again next season and ideally wouldn’t be a starter for a contender.

The possibility that Stephenson revives his career in L.A. isn’t an unrealistic one. Stephenson will only be 25 next season and is only a year removed from nearly making an All-Star team and notching five triple-doubles for a team that won its conference. He’s in the mold of Tyreke Evans as a playmaking wing who can create shots for himself and teammates with his slashing ability.

One could argue that he was stifled in Charlotte’s offense, which ranked 28th in offensive efficiency last season. Hornets’ coach Steve Clifford is known for being defensive-minded and rather unimaginative offensively.

In the pace-and-space era, the Hornets offensive system is ancient and running an offense around a great post player in Al Jefferson doesn’t work well when he’s surrounding him with the likes of Kemba Walker, Stephenson, and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who all rank somewhere between mediocre and atrocious from deep.

This lack of spacing was a nightmare for Charlotte’s offense and was detrimental to all of the players’ offensively.

Perhaps the way that this trade works out best for the Clippers is if they use Stephenson as a trade asset. The third and final year of Stephenson’s contract is a team option, which virtually makes him a $9 million expiring contract. Stephenson’s team option makes him a win-win for the Clippers.

If he starts playing like 2013-14 Lance, he’s worth the $9 million and is a difference maker for a good team. If he continues his horrific play from last season, he becomes an attractive trade asset as an expiring contract.

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    • Trading for Stephenson almost confirms that more moves are on the way. Stephenson is a ball dominant guard as is Jamal Crawford and free agent-to-be Austin Rivers. A portion of Stephenson’s troubles last season are due to playing off-the-ball more often next to Kemba Walker. Stephenson needs the ball in his hands to feel comfortable making plays for himself and others.

    When the ball isn’t in his hands, he’s almost useless. It’s hard to imagine Stephenson being effective sharing the court with either Paul or Crawford.

    Rumors have circulated since J.J. Redick arrived in Los Angeles that Jamal Crawford may be on the way out. Crawford has carried the load for the Clippers’ lackluster bench over the past few years, but he’s an all-offense, no-defense guard who will turn 36 during next season.

    Crawford and Redick are hard to play together in crunch time with Paul because of their lack of size and defense against some of the league’s better wings. If Rivers re-signs in early July, the writing is on the wall for Crawford. The chances that Paul, Redick, Crawford, Stephenson, and Rivers are all in the same backcourt for the start of next season are slim to none.

    If nothing else, the Clippers trade for Stephenson indicates that Doc Rivers is aware that the roster needs tweaked if he plans on coaching at this time next year.

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