Moving Terance Mann to the starting lineup wasn't the flashiest move in the world for the struggling Los Angeles Clippers, but it was a necessary one. Mann isn't necessarily a more talented player than Russell Westbrook, the player he replaced, but rather, Mann's low-usage skillset makes him quite the ideal fit alongside three ball-dominant superstars in Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and James Harden. And on Wednesday night, in a 111-102 win over the Denver Nuggets, Mann proved his worth even though the stats don't show it.

Mann's box-score stats were horrendous; he put up a paltry two points on two shots, and he was a -16 on the night in a nine-point victory. That is not what makes him a valuable member of the Clippers roster though. It's his ability to spare Leonard and George the burden of having to guard the opponent's best perimeter player that makes him a valuable asset, and he helped his team in preventing a huge scoring explosion from Jamal Murray, who seems to always have it out for the Clippers.

“T-Mann does a great job of just coming in, setting the tone, guarding the opposing team's best player and let Kawhi and PG take that responsibility later on in the game,” head coach Tyronn Lue said in his postgame interview, via ClutchPoints Clippers beat reporter Tomer Azarly.

Terance Mann is a diligent worker on defense. He takes no possessions off on that end of the floor, and in the Nuggets' dreaded Nikola Jokic-Jamal Murray two-man game, the Clippers wing worked very hard when it comes to going over screens and forcing Denver to veer away from its bread and butter that won them the championship.

There's a reason why the Clippers fought hard to keep Mann away from the trade package that they had to send away to the Philadelphia 76ers for James Harden. Mann is one of the veteran team's most youthful pieces, and as undersized as he might be at the four, his defensive versatility (guarding quick guards and big wings) makes him quite the valuable piece for a Clippers team with ambitions of winning a ring.