Lance Stephenson and Michael Beasley
It’s hard to try to understand why Magic and Pelinka signed Lance Stephenson over the summer. The year before in Indiana he averaged nine points, five rebounds and three assists per game while shooting 29% from deep. Last season, Stephenson had a 108 DEFRTG and -0.1 DBPM.
Magic and Pelinka said they signed Stephenson, because they wanted to surround LeBron with playmakers, but Stephenson has a career average of 2.9 APG, and he’s never averaged over five assists per game for a season.
I guess “Maginka’ convinced themselves that Stephenson was a good signing because he’s a “wily” veteran, who has playoff experience. They assumed he’d bring grit to the team. They were wrong.
Michael Beasley’s contract over the summer makes more sense than any of the deals listed above. That sounds crazy now, because Beasley had a very bad season in Los Angeles and he’s currently playing in China.
Last season, Beasley played very well in New York, averaging 13 points and six rebounds per game while shooting 40% from distance. Beasley could have easily been an offensive spark plug off the bench, but unfortunately, his mom passed away during the early stages of the season, which made it impossible for Michael to focus on basketball.