Our 2021-2022 Clippers’ player season preview series continues with a player who’s not technically on the Clippers’ right now, two-way youngster Amir Coffey.
Basic Information
Height: 6’7
Weight: 205 pounds
Position: Small forward/Shooting guard
Years in NBA: 2
Age: 24
Key Stats: 3.2 points, 1.0 rebounds, 0.5 assists, and 0.2 steals in 9.0 minutes per game across 44 games played on 43.7/41.1/71.1 shooting splits.
Contract Status: Technically still a restricted free agent, Clippers have a qualifying offer out to bring him back on a two-way deal.
Expectations
If Amir Coffey is on the Clippers next year, expectations might be slightly higher than they were in his first two seasons. The Clippers have some depth, but with Kawhi Leonard out, their forward rotation is a bit shallow, and there’s a possibility Coffey could get real rotation minutes, especially if Justise Winslow doesn’t pan out. Still, realistic expectations will be that Coffey serves once more as a serviceable depth piece who plays in maybe somewhat over half the Clippers’ games and provides a lot of energy and not much else.
Strengths
Coffey’s strongest attribute as an NBA player is probably his defense. While certainly not a lockdown, prime-Kawhi level defensive player, he’s competent on that end, leveraging his size, length, and quickness to cover a lot of ground and play defense across multiple positions. Coffey’s ability to get steals is even more impactful because of his speed in transition, and is one of the ways he provides value on the offensive end as well.
Amir’s other main plus is his overall energy. Most of that does translate to the defensive end, where he’s always moving and hustling, but it does contribute to overall play as well. Amir is an active slasher and cutter who moves off ball and helps create spacing for others despite his own inconsistencies as a shooter. That activity by its very nature gets things going at times, and you never have to worry about Amir trudging up the court or going at half speed.
Weaknesses
Amir just doesn’t have a ton of ability on the offensive end as an NBA player. He’s a 38.7% three point shooter, but on an extremely limited sample size (75 attempts), and was not nearly that good in the G-League. Teams don’t defend him out there, and Amir himself frequently looks unsure of his shot, hesitating or even passing up open looks entirely. Amir can’t really handle the ball well, limiting his ability to create offense for himself or others. He’s also an anemic rebounder, which is a bit puzzling considering his height. In short, Amir doesn’t really contribute in much other way at the NBA level outside of defense and energy.
Summary
Amir Coffey has been a nice player to have on the deep bench in his first two years with the Clippers, and if he’s brought back on a two-way deal, as seems likely, he’ll probably fill the same role in the 2022 season as well.
