Lakers Debate: Better Backcourt, Lakers or Milwaukee Bucks?
Shooting Guard: Rashad Vaughn vs. Jordan Clarkson
This position isn’t very close, as one of the players has simply outperformed the other in nearly every statistic.
Both Rashad Vaughn and Jordan Clarkson project primarily as scorers in the NBA. At 6-foot-6, Vaughn stands one inch taller than Clarkson, although the latter makes up for that advantage with superior athleticism.
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Jordan Clarkson has had a solid first two seasons in the NBA and has outproduced Vaughn by a wide margin. However, Clarkson has also had the advantage of more playing time, so for the rest of this comparison per-36 statistics will be used.
Even when controlling for minutes played, Clarkson averaged nearly ten more points than Vaughn in their rookie years, while putting up nearly four more assists than Vaughn. Clarkson has also been a better rebounder so far, averaging 4.5 rebounds for his career to Vaughn’s 2.
The gap between the two only widens further when efficiency is considered. Clarkson hasn’t exactly been great in this regard so far, as he’s shot 43.8 percent from the field and 33.8 percent from behind the arc. Rashad Vaughn, however, posted far worse numbers in his rookie season, shooting 29 percent from three and a dismal 30.5 percent from the field.
These numbers are truly awful in terms of efficiency, although it’s likely that they will improve as Vaughn’s career continues. However, even significant improvement would leave him behind Jordan Clarkson across the board, and so this one goes to the Lakers pretty comfortably.
Winner: Lakers
Next: Brandon Ingram and Company Excited to Play for Luke Walton
Stay tuned for the rest of the breakdown which will come later this week.