Iman Shumpert, Lance Stephenson, and our DC

Man, Lance Stephenson just came through big time for Indy in clenching their series against the Knicks! I think Stephenson and DC are very comparable-- they don't need to be guarded closely when they are on the perimeter, but they can have a big impact closer to the rim. On the other hand, Iman Shumpert is also a tenacious defender that helps his team with many intangibles-- AND he needs to be defended on the perimeter.

In the Indy/NYK closeout game, I payed a lot of attention to Shumpert, and he was doing everything right with or without the ball. He got into foul trouble early, which took him out of the first half (2 of 3 were bad calls, IMO). Shumpert was setting perfect picks for JR Smith, Melo, and Pregioni-- but the NYKs didn't deliver. Shumpert was in perfect position for a wide open 3pt shot several times when his team-mates chose to take a difficult shot (not at all unusual for Melo or Smith).

Lance Stephenson had an incredible game, even though he might have been a liability in Indy's half-court set. Like DC, the opponent's almost completely ignored him on the perimeter. But Lance made up for it with transition scores, important rebounds, and out-hustling his opponent (sounds a lot like DC). Even though Stephenson's numbers were better than Shumpert's, I would still prefer Shumpert's game to either Lance or DC. If DC (or Stephenson) could be more of a perimeter threat, I would put them a notch ahead of Shumpert. The main drawback to Shumpert's game is that he is playing with Melo and JR Smith-- both of which will gladly take a contested shot over passing for a higher percentage shot.

DC has suffered by not getting a lot of playing time, and (AND) the Jazz' delusion that we have had a viable contending team. Frankly, I bought in to the ideal we had a contending team-- but, not one that involved giving up too much time to Burks, Evans, and DC, as opposed to Mo, Tinsley, Foye, Marv-Will, Heyhay, Millsap, Favors, Kanter, and Big Al. Even after our season is over, I still come up with the same best players to have played: Mo, Tinsley, Foye, Marv-Will, Heyhay, Millsap, Favors, Kanter, and Big Al. IF the Jazz made it into the playoffs, DC might have come up with a game similar to Lance Stephenson's (or Shumpert's). But. we can't go back and pick out any times in the NYK's or Indy's season where they really relied on either Shumpert or Stephenson-- because, neither of those players had much of an impact on the regular season for either of those teams!