Los Angeles Clippers: Can Lou Williams repeat what he did last season?
The Clippers trading Blake Griffin should have marked the beginning of their descent. Without an All-Star, L.A. shouldn’t have managed to stay alive in an unforgiving Western Conference. Ultimately, they missed the playoffs, as was reasonably expected. But the Clippers forced the league to take seriously the threat of them making the playoffs, even in the face of injury and roster change.
Most of that can be attributed to what was arguably the best work of Williams’ career. Sweet Lou had the most consistent scoring season of his career, averaging 22.6 points on above-average efficiency and, on many nights, carrying his team’s offense. Lou Williams: Bench Gunner nearly led a team to the playoffs as a first option. Entering this season, with a slightly different set of teammates, Williams’ role may change ever so slightly to accommodate for a younger and more balanced roster.
The Clippers will get Avery Bradley, Danilo Gallinari, Patrick Beverley and Milos Teodosić back from injuries, thus relegating Williams back to the bench and complicating his role. Williams is single-minded; he gets buckets first, second and third. Last season he became a facilitator not by choice, but by necessity. With a healthier roster around him and fewer shots available to him, a repeat of last season’s heroics appears far less possible. Williams will become less a necessity and more of a luxury.