2016 Clipper Exit Interviews: CJ Wilcox

Name: Brian Craig "C.J." Wilcox

Age: 25

Key Stats: CJ only played 21 games, averaging 7.3 minutes per game. In this stints, he only averaged 3 points while shooting 39.4% from the field and 39.1% from behind the arc (note, this is a relatively small sample size as he only took 23 3 pointers).

Years in NBA: 2

2015-2016 Salary: CJ's contract was worth $1,159,680.

Future Contract Status: Wilcox is still on his rookie contract, so he is set to make $1,209,600 in the coming season, followed by a team option in 2017-2018 worth $2,183,328.

Summary: CJ was all over the place, being called up then demoted back to the D-League multiple times throughout this season. Clipper fans have questioned Wilcox's potential role on this team since the day he was drafted, and this season did not provide any answers. It has always been apparent that Wilcox would have trouble finding playing time with JJ Redick, Jamal Crawford, and Austin Rivers ahead of him in the rotation.
That being said, many Clipper fans still wanted to see CJ get some opportunities to show if his elite shooting stroke in college translated into the NBA. Unfortunately, he only played 21 games on the team, so there is still a big question mark on if he can have an impact in the NBA.

Strengths: Wilcox has seemingly done all the right things to prove that he is ready for a real shot at some minutes. Touted as one of the best shooters in his draft class, he has lived up to this by shooting 41% from behind in the arc in the D-League (on 163 attempts) and shooting 45% from the field. Additionally, he is a solid free throw shooter, hitting them at a rate of 83%. Unlike Jamal and Rivers, Wilcox has shown that he does not need the ball in his hands to be effective, as he is comfortable moving off ball.

Weaknesses: Although there have been a handful of isolation plays where CJ looked solid, defense has never been one of his strong suits. Ever since college, people have questioned both his defensive awareness as well as his tenacity. Even though his strengths are in scoring, he hasn't shown a great ability to create offense for himself or others.

Future With the Clippers: Although Wilcox is still under contract for the new few years, how this off season pans out may impact his role with the team. It seems unlikely that Wilcox will be able to break into the rotation (or really have much of a shot) should Crawford or a new backup PG be re-signed (the latter would likely push Rivers to play at the SG position). An interesting thing to note is that Doc turned down a deal of Tony Snell for CJ Wilcox, so it seems as though Doc does see something in him.

Favorite Moment as a Clipper: Oh, here we go. I'm pretty sure this category was MADE for CJ Wilcox. CJ nearly led the Clippers to an insane comeback against the Warriors, and even though he felt short, it was definitely one of the most exhilarating parts of the game.