Can Steve Clifford Find Balance for Lance Stephenson with Charlotte Hornets?
Lance Stephenson plays on the edge, and the tough task of keeping him from falling over it falls to Charlotte Hornets head coach Steve Clifford.
Descended from the Van Gundy coaching tree, Clifford is a good man for the gig. Because while both Jeff (under whom Clifford studied in New York and Houston) and Stan (Clifford's boss in Orlando) have rightfully earned reputations as brusque, no-nonsense personalities, they've also displayed a remarkable ability to manage temperamental characters.
Watching Stan hold things together in Orlando during the Dwightmare of 2012 must have been instructive for Clifford, and though his current situation with Stephenson comes nowhere close to the toxicity of that one, he's probably no less grateful for the lesson.
Tricky Situation
Stephenson has struggled since joining the Hornets as a free agent, shooting just 26.7 percent from the field and turning the ball over at an alarming rate. Worse still, he's been passing up open shots, over-dribbling and generally breaking off from Charlotte's schemes on both ends a bit too frequently.
That's understandable; he's pressing. He's hardly the first big acquisition to get into trouble trying to do too much. I mean, everybody wants to impress the boss. And when the boss is Michael Jordan, and he likes you, there's real pressure to justify that affinity (and the $27 million investment MJ made).
"I was in a daze," Stephenson said of his summertime meeting with Jordan, per The Associated Press. "I'm like, 'I'm talking to Michael Jordan right now.' And I'm just shaking and sweating."
Stephenson needs to settle down, but not totally. For all the problems that arise when he threatens to go off the rails, it's also true that Lance is at his best when things get chaotic. He's a terror on the break, and he can wreak havoc with his scrambling gambles on D.
So far, the chaos has been uncontrolled. And Stephenson's poor play has gotten him benched for two fourth quarters.
"I went with the team that was playing the best,” Clifford tersely explained after pulling Stephenson for the final period against the Memphis Grizzlies on Nov. 1, per Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer. “I’m going to coach to win. He just didn’t play very well. Look, he’s trying to find his rhythm. But we’ve got to be organized."
Clifford is in a tough spot. His Hornets played surprisingly solid defense last year because they were disciplined, adhering to a system that hid a number of weak individual defenders. Stephenson's penchant for breaking off plays on offense is a relatively minor issue, but disrupting the organization of Clifford's finely calibrated scheme on the other end is a cardinal sin.
Yet freelancing frees Lance. His greatest value is as a disruptor.
Suffice it to say there's going to be a learning curve—for both player and coach.
Positive Signs, Negative History
Stephenson has handled his struggles (and relegations to the pine) well.
"It’s tough, but it’s part of being a pro,” Stephenson told Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops. “Learning the system, learning new guys, not getting frustrated, keep playing through my mistakes and just trying to get other people involved."
Clifford is as aware of the inevitable growing pains as Stephenson is.
"We had a good talk today, he knows where he’s at, and I think we have to be patient and let him progress at a speed that makes sense for all of us," Clifford said after Stephenson performed better in a win over the New York Knicks, per Brett Pollakoff of NBCSports.com.
Everyone's feeling fine for now, all things considered, but there remains the looming specter of Stephenson's troubling second half with the Indiana Pacers last year.
"After Stephenson missed out on the All-Star team, he changed. He started a bit of a personal vendetta against East coaches, wanting to personally send a message in those games, which took him further out of the flow on some nights, sources said. Overall, the team noticed a shift in Stephenson from a more team-oriented approach to a more self-oriented focus, where he started obsessing about his statistics.
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Maybe it's not fair to bring up Stephenson's issues at a previous stop. Maybe getting his new contract and starting fresh has erased his selfish streak. But we know Lance has taken perceived slights personally in the past, and acted out in a way that hurt his team.
Continued benchings—or any lingering general dissatisfaction with his role—could lead to familiarly destructive reactions.
Many Hands Make Light Work
It's critical for Clifford to figure Lance out because the shooting guard is an immense talent with the ability to make the Hornets much more than the No. 7 seed they were a year ago. But the coach doesn't have to take on Lance alone.
Some responsibility falls to point guard Kemba Walker, whose $48 million contract extension indicates he's a huge part of the franchise's future. He's got clout now and, more importantly, he can control when and where Stephenson gets his touches on offense.
Walker must put his teammate in a position to succeed.
Al Jefferson is the Hornets' best player, which means he'll have to speak up in support of Clifford if things start to get testy between Stephenson and his coach. Sometimes, it takes someone on the roster (preferably a lead dog) to restore order in the locker room. Jefferson needs to be ready to set everyone straight if it comes to that.
And let's not forget Jordan, the team's owner and the only man in the organization Stephenson admittedly reveres. You'd have to think MJ could reach Lance if Clifford and his teammates fail to walk the delicate line between criticism and support.
Clifford's task is as tough as it is important. He has to set a tone with Stephenson that preserves the team's trademark discipline, but he must be careful not to alienate him. So far, Clifford has been honest, direct and fair, which is really all you can ask—and something Stephenson seems to respect.
The East is as wide-open as ever, and if Clifford can reach Stephenson, if he can get the most out of him, Charlotte can make a real mess of the conference's top teams.
And Stephenson, for all his flaws, is at his best when things get messy.
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