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Do not expect the second coming of Gary Payton II, the Warriors guard who barely made the team last year on a non-guaranteed deal, developed into a defensive star and subsequently moved on to Portland with a three-year, $26 million contract—or what amounted to a more than 400% raise. That is not what Ben McLemore is as a player, or ever will be.
But, if the Warriors did wind up signing McLemore, one of the four former top NBAers they worked out earlier this month, one Western Conference executive says, he could look at least a little familiar.
“No, no, he is not Gary Payton Jr., no one is,” said one Western Conference coach told Heavy Sports. “Think a lot more in terms of Damion Lee, you know, both in terms of the good and the bad. He probably should have a chance with a team just because he is very exciting when he is making shots.”
Lee, of course, is the 29-year-old wing who was with the Warriors for four seasons, and helped the team to last year’s NBA championship, before leaving to join the Suns as a free agent. Like Lee, McLemore makes his bones in the NBA as a shooter, albeit (also like Lee) a streaky one.
In his career, McLemore (the No. 7 pick by the Kings in the 2013 draft) has averaged 9.0 points while making 36.8% of his 3-pointers, and spent last season carving out a role for Portland, where he averaged 10.2 points on 36.2% 3-point shooting, taking 6.5 of his 8.4 shots per game from behind the arc.
McLemore’s Defensive Struggles Could Keep Him From Signing
The big negative with McLemore, though, is that he is incredibly one-dimensional. When he is not making shots from the arc, he is just not doing much of anything else—he does not rebound and he is not much of a passer. For his career, he has averaged just 1.0 assists and 2.2 rebounds in 22.5 minutes per game.
Teams might be able to stomach that, the coach said, if it were not for what McLemore does defensively.
“He really, really struggles to keep people in front of him defensively, and that is where his ability to knock down shots might get overshadowed on a team like the Warriors,” the coach said. “You have got to be able to play some semblance of defense for that team if you want to stick around. That was the thing with Lee, too. He just did not defend enough. It could be a problem with McLemore, just not good enough defensively.”
Warriors Seeking Possible Iguodala Replacement
The Warriors, in addition to bringing in McLemore earlier this month for a workout, also brought in veterans Elfrid Payton (a guard), plus wing Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and power forward Kenneth Faried. The coach felt that Hollis-Jefferson had the best chance to land with the Warriors because of his defensive versatility.
Chances are, the Warriors will only need any of the players they’ve worked out if veteran wing Andre Iguodala decides to retire. Iguodala, who returned the Warriors last year for his 18th season, has not yet announced his decision on whether he will play or retire.
The Warriors are working out players now only to have a contingency plan should Iguodala decide to call it quits on his career.
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