Lance Stephenson brings his own ‘Hot Sauce’ to Clippers

If you thought Clippers forward Lance Stephenson’s no-look, behind-the-back pass to Blake Griffin was something to behold, just wait.

“Twenty games in, I’m going to be looking like ‘Hot Sauce’ and throwing those type of passes,” Stephenson said with a laugh late Saturday night, invoking the nickname of street ball legend Philip Champion.

Stephenson has already wowed with some fancy flips. He threw a lob to DeAndre Jordan for a dunk on Saturday during the Clippers’ 114-109 victory over the Sacramento Kings, found Jordan again with a no-look pass for a dunk and connected with the center who has become his favorite early season target with a touch pass for yet another dunk.

As for that seemingly impossible pass to Griffin, well, it didn’t quite work out, going out of bounds for a turnover.

“It was a great pass,” Griffin said, “I just wasn’t ready for it. I messed up his highlight reel.”

Stephenson’s stats against the Kings weren’t much — he finished the game with seven points, four assists and two rebounds, along with two turnovers — but his presence has made a palpable impact in his first three games as a Clipper.

He pumps his arms and yells in triumph after big plays and even took time to admire himself Saturday, watching a replay of one of his passes on the Staples Center scoreboard. It’s the kind of emotion the Clippers need, particularly on nights like Saturday when they are largely lagging.

“You see him making faces and jumping around, that picks everybody’s energy up. It really does,” Clippers shooting guard Jamal Crawford said. “From a distance, you’re like, man, this dude’s crazy. You really do. I was like, he’s crazy — good guy but he’s just crazy. But your team, you want that craziness, you love playing with him and he’s been great for us.”

Stephenson said he’s actually calmer now than he was in previous stops with Indiana and Charlotte, where he was known for shimmying his body and blowing in superstar LeBron James’ ear.

“I was worse than [now], but that gets me going,” Stephenson said of his emotions. “When I look frustrated, that just gets me going. All I need is someone to [say], ‘Man, you’re going to make the next shot’ and then I’m back focused.”

Stephenson’s irritation has been visible at times as he continues to learn the tendencies of fellow starters Griffin, Jordan, Chris Paul and J.J. Redick, who have played together for two full seasons. His teammates have continually spoken with him about staying composed amid the antics.

“Sometimes you’ve got to [say], ‘All right, we need you,’” Paul said, “but at the end of the day he has the right spirit and he wants to win and he wants to compete and that’s what we need.”

Said Stephenson: “If they get frustrated with me, I’m going to just keep playing. I’m going to tell them, ‘Man, sorry, I’m going to get it next time.’”

Fore no more?

One of the Clippers’ early season buzzwords has been sacrifice. For Redick, that meant giving up golf.

The shooting guard said he doesn’t want to risk injuring his back with a vigorous swing, so he retired from the sport until his NBA career is over.

Not that it’s been easy. He was tempted to relent when Clippers owner Steve Ballmer texted him this summer with an invitation to play at the L.A. Country Club.

“I told him, ‘I just want to be about hoop during the season,’” Redick said. “Obviously, I have obligations with my wife and my son, but I think outside of them, basketball is the focus … and building toward next spring and getting in the right position” for the playoffs.

ben.bolch@latimes.com

Twitter: @latbbolch