2025-26 Season

WALTER CLAYTON JR.

Memphis Grizzlies | Guard | 6-4

2025-26 Season

WALTER CLAYTON JR.

Memphis Grizzlies | Guard | 6-4 | Yr 0

7.8 PPG

2.0 RPG

4.0 APG

20.4 MPG

-8.1 Impact

Jr. produces at an poor rate for a 20-minute workload.

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NET IMPACT BREAKDOWN

Every stat, every credit, every cost — per game average

-8.1

Scoring +6.4

Points 7.8 PPG = +4.6

Shot Making above expected FG% = +1.8

Creation +0.8

Creation 4.0 AST/g = +0.8

Turnovers -3.9

Turnovers 1.7/g = -3.9

Defense -0.3

Defense 0.6 STL, 0.3 BLK = -0.3

Hustle & Effort +1.2

Rebounds 2.0 RPG = +1.2

Raw Impact +4.2

Baseline (game-average expected) −12.3

Net Impact

-8.1

2th pctl vs Guards

PBP Credit: Every play is analyzed from play-by-play data. Scorers get difficulty-adjusted credit, assisters get creation value based on the shot opportunity they created, and turnovers are classified by type. Shot difficulty is derived from 1M+ shots across 4 seasons. Full methodology

TEAM COMPARISON

#22

Impact

#13

Creation

#22

Hustle

Defense

of 22 teammates (10+ games, 10+ min)

Zach Edey +13.1 Ty Jerome +8.6 Jaren Jackson Jr. +6.6 Santi Aldama +6.5 Cedric Coward +4.1 Jock Landale +4.0 Ja Morant +2.9 GG Jackson +2.2 Olivier-Maxence Prosper +1.9 Cam Spencer +1.6 Javon Small +0.8 Taylor Hendricks +0.3 Jaylen Wells +0.1 Rayan Rupert -1.0 Tyler Burton -1.8 Scotty Pippen Jr. -3.0 John Konchar -3.1 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope -3.1 Vince Williams Jr. -4.3 Jahmai Mashack -5.8 DeJon Jarreau -6.0 Walter Clayton Jr. -8.2

Similar Players

Same position, closest production profile this season.

SKILL DNA

Percentile rank vs 245 Guards with 10+ games

Scoring 36th

7.8 PPG

Efficiency 20th

49.4% TS

Playmaking 76th

4.0 APG

Rebounding 20th

2.0 RPG

Defense 64th

+8.4/g

Hustle 28th

+6.7/g

Creation 32th

+2.20/g

Shot Making 35th

+5.39/g

TO Discipline 19th

0.08/min

THE SEASON SO FAR

Maddening volatility defined Walter Clayton Jr.’s first twenty games. He occasionally controlled the floor without dominating the box score. On 11/03 vs BOS, a modest seven-point outing yielded a massive +10.0 impact score because his elite defensive execution and crisp playmaking fueled the second unit. Yet, hidden costs frequently wrecked his floor value even when his jumper was falling. During his 12/05 vs NYK appearance, Clayton tallied 11 points but still posted a -2.0 impact because prolonged, quiet stretches off the ball dragged down his overall effectiveness. When his shot vanished entirely, the results were disastrous. Look no further than 11/24 vs GSW, where a complete offensive blank—missing all five of his shots—destroyed his net impact and left him with a miserable -8.1 mark. To survive in a modern NBA rotation, he must figure out how to stay engaged and eliminate these passive disappearing acts.

A maddening inconsistency defined Walter Clayton Jr.'s mid-season stretch, where erratic decision-making frequently sabotaged his minutes. Even when he found the bottom of the net, hidden costs often dragged his value into the red. During the 01/10 vs CHA matchup, he scored a respectable 13 points but posted a dismal -6.5 impact score because constant defensive miscommunications routinely left shooters wide open. Conversely, he occasionally found ways to drive winning basketball without a heavy scoring load. On 01/01 vs LAC, Clayton managed just 9 points but generated a +4.0 impact thanks to outstanding defensive engagement and high-motor hustle plays. His absolute ceiling emerged on 12/27 vs SAS, where flawless shot selection resulted in a perfect 6/6 from the floor and a massive +12.4 impact. Yet, those decisive attacking moments were fleeting. Too often, as seen in his -11.8 impact disaster on 01/17 vs DAL, severe spacing issues crippled the offense as defenders aggressively sagged off his perimeter presence.

This grueling twenty-game stretch was defined by a severe crisis of offensive identity, as Walter Clayton Jr. repeatedly derailed possessions with forced looks and contested isolations. His 03/09 vs BKN outing captured this frustrating dynamic perfectly. Despite scoring 13 points, he posted a brutal -12.5 impact score because he bogged down the offense by heavily relying on contested isolation plays that yielded terrible returns. The bottom fell out completely on 02/25 vs GSW. During that game, a disastrous 1-for-8 shooting performance and relentless shot-forcing tanked his overall impact to a staggering -13.4. Yet, a brief glimpse of his actual value emerged on 03/01 vs IND when he finally embraced a pure facilitator role. Sacrificing his own scoring to hand out 14 assists, Clayton picked apart the defense to earn a +3.9 impact score despite scoring just 7 points, revealing exactly how effective he can be when he stops hunting bad jumpers.

IMPACT TIMELINE

Game-by-game performance vs average. Green = above average, red = below.

Best Game

17 PTS vs SAS

Dec 28 | +13.6 impact

Worst Game

2 PTS vs LAC

Mar 07 | -22.5 impact

PATTERNS

Struggling. Jr. has posted negative impact in 84% of games this season. The production rarely outweighs the cost.

Streaky shooter — only cracks 45% from the field in 27% of games. Efficiency is all over the place night-to-night.

Good defender on his best nights, but it comes and goes. Some games Jr. locks in defensively, others he gets picked apart.

Small downward trend. First-half impact: -7.2, second-half: -9.0. Not alarming yet, but trending the wrong direction.

Tends to go on runs. Longest hot streak: 2 games. Longest cold streak: 18 games.

MATCHUP HISTORY

Based on 75 games with tracking data. Shows who guarded this player on offense and who he guarded on defense, with their shooting stats in those matchups.