Jeremy Lamb May Struggle For Playing Time This Season Because of Defensive Woes

Based on Steve Clifford’s recent comments, it appears as though Jeremy Lamb may struggle to find playing time this season with the Charlotte Hornets.

After a breakout start to last season, Jeremy Lamb was seemingly put in Steve Clifford’s doghouse for the second half of the year. He played in limited minutes for the Charlotte Hornets and struggled to get off of the bench. While he has great athleticism and scoring ability, coach Clifford is finding it hard to play a guy with the defensive woes of Lamb.

Although Jeremy Lamb had an impressive performance against the Boston Celtics in the team’s second preseason game, Clifford was critical of the shooting guard after the game. In a recent interview with the Locked on Hornets podcast, Steve Clifford was asked about Jeremy and said “He scored. Our defense with that group was not close to.. what you’d have to do to play even competitively in an NBA game. Frankly, I’m finding it hard, just because a guy scored a couple points. Let’s put it this way, he’s a good player. He’s got to play both ends of the floor, and a lot better than that.”

The 24-year old guard scored a team-high 16 points, grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds, and dished out four assists on the night. A majority of his numbers came late in the game after the result had already been decided. The team-best performance did not impress the Charlotte Hornets’ head coach.

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If Lamb’s defense, or lack there of, is the reason for him being in Clifford’s doghouse, that may not change anytime soon. While Jeremy has worked tirelessly this summer, he has always had his downfall on the defensive end of the court throughout his career. He has the length, speed, and athleticism to be a great perimeter defender but Lamb has not yet taken that step forward.

Unless something drastic happens, Jeremy may struggle for playing time and regular minutes this season. Steve Clifford prioritizes defense and if Lamb is unwilling to put 110% effort in that part of his game, he won’t see much game action in 2016. He averaged 0.6 steals per game and 0.5 blocks per game last year but his defensive woes go far beyond just numbers.

There are times when Lamb is completely lost on defense. While he may have flashes of offensive brilliance and highlight steals or blocks, he is far too often losing his man or getting beat. Here’s a look at the mental lapses that Jeremy had with the Hornets last season:

Although Jeremy is an outstanding scorer and can provide instant offense with the second unit, Clifford may be more included to go with Marco Belinelli ahead of Lamb. The 6’5 wing play has proven that he can flourish with this team in Clifford’s system as he averaged 8.8 points per game last season in only 18.6 minutes per game.

Based on his offensive output alone, Jeremy will continue to be given opportunities but if he doesn’t improve on the defense soon, he could be permanently relegated to the bench for the remainder of his NBA career.

Lamb became somewhat of a fan favorite because of his outside shooting ability and athletic dunks but as his defensive stumbles became more evident, people understood why he was benched.

Whether it be a lack of effort or ability, something needs to change for Jeremy to maintain a permanent role for the entire 2016-17 season. Steve Clifford may have been hard or critical of Lamb but he still believes in him and will continue to give him chances.

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It is unclear what Lamb’s role will be once the regular season begins but he will definitely need to prove himself during the preseason if he wants to earn consistent minutes. Jeremy has the chance to carve out the sixth man role with the Charlotte Hornets but that is unlikely if he continues to struggle on defense. He may end back up in Steve Clifford’s doghouse, struggling for minutes this year.