He is obviously just a role player, but the Clippers hope that he can perform both offensively and defensively?

In the previous NBA regular season, the Phoenix Suns, playing at home, successfully defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 115-102. After this game, the Suns' record improved to 4 wins and 5 losses, and their ranking was overtaken by the Clippers and many teams to rank 9th in the Western Conference; while the Clippers, who had suffered three consecutive losses, had a record of 3 wins and 5 losses, and their ranking was surpassed by many teams and fell to 12th in the Western Conference.

Although the Clippers lost the game, the team's starting striker Derrick Jones Jr. did his best. Jones Jr. played for 22 minutes and 7 seconds, shooting 3 of 4 from the field, 2 of 3 from beyond the arc, and 2 of 2 free throws. He scored 10 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal, and 1 block. He also had 4 fouls and a plus-minus of -25. Jones Jr. still maintained a good touch on the offensive end. He also seized the limited opportunities and scored a lot of points, which can be regarded as providing a lot of support to the team on the offensive end. Jones Jr.'s performance on the defensive end is also good, and he can also display his defensive characteristics. It's just that the overall situation of the team is really bad. Not only does it have no scoring ability on the offensive end, but it's also riddled with holes on the defensive end. Jones Jr. can't provide more support to the team in this situation.

In the NBA regular season last season, Jones Jr. played a total of 77 times in 82 games, averaging 24.3 minutes per game. He averaged 10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 1 steal, and 0.4 blocks per game. He also had 0.9 turnovers and 2 fouls. He shot 52.6% from the field, 35.6% from the three-point range, and 70.3% from the free throw line. In the playoffs, Jones Jr. played a total of 7 times, averaging 18.4 minutes per game. He averaged 7.3 points, 1.9 rebounds, 0.3 assists, 0.6 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game. He also had 0.4 turnovers and 0.4 fouls. He shot 43.8% from the field, 30% from the three-point range, and 37.5% from the free throw line. Since the start of this season, Jones Jr. has averaged 24.1 minutes per game in the first 8 games, averaging 11.3 points, 2.5 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.6 steals and 1 block. He also has 0.6 turnovers and 2.5 fouls. He has shot 63% from the field, 46.9% from three-point range, and 77.8% from free throws.

Jones Jr. has made significant progress this season. His offensive efficiency is quite outstanding, his three-point shooting rate is also maintained at a super high level, and his contribution on the defensive end is also obvious to all. However, he is only a role player after all, and his influence on the game is still relatively limited. Jones Jr. obviously does not have enough ability to affect the trend of the game. Next, we can also take a look at how the Clippers can break the situation. When the role players perform well but the core players are unstable, how can the Clippers improve the team's competitiveness?