Dime NBA Draft Profile: Lance Stephenson

College, NBA, NBA Draft / May 24, 2010 / 12:00 pm

Lance Stephenson (photo. BH Photography/University of Cincinnati)

Once the regular season ended, 16 NBA GMs had their minds set on the NBA Playoffs. But for those teams that have been counting ping pong balls instead of playoff victories, the upcoming NBA Draft has many intriguing prospects that need to be recognized. So with March Madness over, Dime contributor Lucas Shapiro continues profiling players and giving them a team that would best fit their talent. Last week was Kentucky’s Eric Bledsoe, so now we’re on to Cincinnati’s Lance Stephenson.

Player Comparisons: Tyreke Evans, Ron Artest and Aaron McKie

Athleticism
Lance Stephenson has had an NBA body since the day he stepped on the court for Lincoln High School. Standing at 6-5 and weighing in at 210 pounds, Stephenson has the ideal body for a shooting guard. He also has the quickness, wingspan (6-10), and jumping ability. Stephenson nearly has all of the tools to be an elite athlete and a mismatch for all guards. The one problem comes on the defensive end. It appears that Stephenson lacks lateral quickness. The hard part to determine is whether it is a lack of determination or a lack of good sliding technique.
Grade: A-

Fundamentals
The untrained eye may have a tough time keeping track of what Stephenson does on the court. This can be due to his speed and excellent ball handling skills. He certainly fills part of the New York City guard stereotype in terms of knowing how to handle the ball and face pressure. He is also extremely good at creating his shot off of the dribble and converting. Since Stephenson can blow by people, he tends to go too fast at times and gets out of control. This is one of the reasons he averaged 2.4 turnovers per game. His ability to play both guard positions would help his stock more if he used his great court vision more often. As for defense, Stephenson knows how to get steals, but needs to figure out how to use his wingspan to his advantage.
Grade: B+

NBA Readiness
Unless you are Kevin Durant or John Wall, another year of college never hurts. Stephenson is a raw athlete at the moment and could use a year or two to mature in college. For a freshman, he did put up good numbers, but he it is questionable whether he can make an instant impact like this in the NBA. The position he will play at the next level will determine whether he will be ready or not. Running the point is not easy for rookies, especially players who are not pure point guards. If you think about it, Jared Jeffries was getting serious playing time in New York because he had the ability to guard any position. Now imagine what kind of playing time Stephenson would get if he became more versatile.
Grade: B-

Potential
It’s hard to deny Stephenson’s great talent. He is capable of being a great combo guard, one who can play both guard positions effectively. The only way that Stephenson can reach his potential is if he wants it. According to Chad Ford, he’s looking to quiet the critics and prove he is trying to change his attitude for the NBA. This would be a great start for Stephenson to reach his potential, but actions speak louder than words. Stephenson is infamous for being known as the next great player since middle school. Players with this label have a hard time overcoming the expectations.
Grade: B

Best Fit: San Antonio Spurs
Veteran NBA players are great to learn from, but veteran coaches are even better. The basketball genius Gregg Popovich would know how to put Stephenson in his place, along with Tim Duncan. The potential departures of Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker would open up a spot for Roger Mason and Stephenson to battle for. Regardless of whether he wins the battle or not, it would be a great experience for Stephenson to actually have to compete for something for once.

Runner-up: Miami Heat
There is a good chance Dwyane Wade will leave Miami this summer. In the event of this occurrence, South Beach would be a great fit for Stephenson. He would be able to instantly come in and play. The roster could be very different considering a majority of their team will be free agents this summer. This will allow the Heat to completely start over and Stephenson has the potential to be a good building block. It would also be far from home, another underrated way to change an attitude.

What do you think?

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Tags: Cincinnati, Lance Stephenson

Posted in College, NBA, NBA Draft |

8 Responses to “Dime NBA Draft Profile: Lance Stephenson”

May 24th, 2010 at 12:18 pm

Mr. RLW says:

Yeah so not to sound like a hater, but…

Stephenson’s athleticism is a B at best. I personally think he would be better served to drop about 5 to 7 lbs. and learn to play at that weight on a regular basis. Not to mention, I refuse to believe he’s 210lbs.

His fundamentals actually grade out very highly. But what one more year in college would have helped him with, is an ability to reign in his streetball bg. Speaking solely on his handle, Lance overdribbles ALOT! He has a nice handle, but its loose. He needs to tighten it up. It makes no sense to be able to rock your man on his heels one play and the next play, you go to set him up and you dribble the ball off your foot or out of bounds.

As for his potential, man the dude needs one more year and a serious summer working on his handle and the consistency of his jumper. He got plenty game, but like you mentioned, he’s raw. Teams aren’t as easy to draft raw talents early, unless they are big men. Back to his potential though, his attitude will ultimately make or break him. Time will tell.

Personally I think if he would have gone back to UC for just one more season, tightened up his handle and proved ON THAT LEVEL, that his attitude on the court has changed… he’d be a surefire top 15 pick. But unless he crushes in his workouts, don’t be surprised to see him fall to the 2nd round.
May 24th, 2010 at 1:06 pm

Sweet English says:

*Insert falling bomb sound*

!BUST!

(can you be a bust if you get picked late 2nd round?)
May 24th, 2010 at 2:01 pm

Bruce says:

Dime is fascinated over Mr. Born Ready. He is like their pet project. I wouldn’t be surprised if Mr. Born Ready graced one of the covers or had an article written by Dime Magazine. I like the name and all. I watched dude during March Madness but Mr. Born Ready ain’t ready for the NBA, not just yet though.

What I don’t understand if this — Of offense, Dime labeled, “Quickness and Speed.” But of defense, “lacks lateral movements.” Huh?
May 24th, 2010 at 4:05 pm

Travis says:

I always felt that if he fell to the end of the 1st round the Lakers should take a look at him. Phil loves big guards, and with Fisher getting old and Farmar not getting better, he’d be a nice fit. He could learn from Kobe and hopefully realize his potential. I also felt if he want back to school another year he’d probably be a lottery if not the #1 pick next year.
May 24th, 2010 at 4:55 pm

Lucas Shapiro says:

Mr. RLW- you make some good points about Lance. I think he’s working on controlling his weight considering he looked a lot slimmer at the combine. You are right, time will tell all.

Sweet English- If Lance does fall that far, I’d say he’s a steal.

Bruce- Considering Dime is based out of NYC and Lance is the all-time leading scorer in the state, is it a bad thing to talk about him every now and then??

Travis- I agree, that’d be a great fit. If he could learn about work ethic from Kobe… watch out.
May 24th, 2010 at 7:31 pm

Seven Duece says:

“elite athlete”, um i think not. deadly scorer off the dribble though.
May 25th, 2010 at 2:44 pm

KCL says:

Good Profile on Lance Stephenson he’s going to be a stud in the L he’s definetly got skills I don’t think South Beach would be a good place for a nineteen year old kid from Coney Island about to get seriously paid for the first time, look how beasley ended up (not that was the only reason B-Easy isnt living up, he’s got some effort issues)
May 25th, 2010 at 4:13 pm

Ty says:

Mr. Stephenson is getting some bad advice and pressure from his family. He almost wasn’t eligible for college because of that reality based internet tv show and his dad coaching the Raising Champions AAU team.

Here is an adequate assessment of Stephenson’s game:

A scoring guard that can’t shoot consistently off the dribble. Too much unnecessary movements on his jump shot. Over dribbles the basketball and takes teammates out of the offense. Very confident player that could develop into a very good player in the NBA, if he does not take the Sebastian Telfair route. Competitor on the defensive end but lacks knowledge of the team aspect of the game of basketball. Needs to stop playing in the Rucker during the summers and not listen to the hype that has plagued his game. He needs to constantly work out of with people that are better than him and get a personal trainer. I heard while working out in Las Vegas before the NBA combine he dropped 20+ pounds and is probably in the best shape of his life. He also needs to reassess some of his of the court decisions and probably take less advice from his father.