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The LA Lakers’ acquisition of Russell Westbrook has been met with criticism and skepticism, even though there are also many who support the move by the 2020 NBA champs.
Much of the criticism stems from Russell Westbrook’s lack of shooting (career 30.5 percent from 3-point range), which is an understandable concern for the LA Lakers. After all, they were 25th in the league in 3-pointers made last season and 21st in 3-point percentage.
But the 2017 MVP is determined to make his partnership with LeBron James and Anthony Davis work. So rather than look at the disadvantages of having Westbrook around, let’s look at what he does that will benefit the LA Lakers.
5. Russell Westbrook gives the LA Lakers another floor leader
The LA Lakers offense sometimes gets stagnant, even with LeBron James on the floor. With Russell Westbrook around, they have another player who can set up plays and keep the ball moving. He has led the league in assists in three of the last four seasons.
The only time that Brodie didn’t lead the league in assists was when James had his career-best assist number in 2019-20. Westbrook has an 8.5 assists-per-game average for his career and recorded a career-high 11.7 dimes a night last season.
With two of the top playmakers in the NBA in a purple and gold jersey, the LA Lakers should improve from their 15th place standing in assists (24.7) last season.
4. A consistent third scorer
One of the issues that plagued the LA Lakers last season was their inability to generate enough points on the board. Though the lengthy absences of James and Davis due to injuries severely affected the Lakers’ overall numbers last season, the lack of another scorer who could put up 18-to-20 points a night was one of their major issues.
The Lakers were fine defensively, but their offense needed a boost. Before Davis went down with a calf and an Achilles injury, LA had the league’s 10th best offense. For a title contender, being at the bottom rung of a top 10 list isn’t good. After Davis’ injury, they dropped to 15th in offensive rating. When James followed his fellow All-Star on the injury list, the Lakers’ offensive rating plummeted to 20th.
Russell Westbrook will give the offense a shot in the arm. He has a career average of 23.2 points a game with a high of 31.6 when he led the league in scoring for the second time in 2017.
Even without a consistent jump shot, Russell Westbrook finds ways to score and has a reliable jumper from the foul line.
3. Rebounding help
Russell Westbrook is one of the best rebounding guards ever and he can help the LA Lakers in grabbing a few more boards next season.
Former Lakers coach Pat Riley once said, “No rebounds. No rings” to his Showtime squad in the 1980s. He would probably be disgusted with the Lakers’ most recent production on the boards.
Last season, the LA Lakers were just 16th in the league in rebounding with an average of 44.2. By contrast, Russell Westbrook’s Wizards were eighth overall (45.2) and the 2021 NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks were second (48.1).
Westbrook relentlessly attacks the boards and he has a knack for tracking an opponent’s shot and where it will land when it misses. He should give the Lakers’ big men ample support on the glass.
2. LeBron James can rest with Russell Westbrook around
The LA Lakers have a 115.0 offensive rating with LeBron James on the floor, which would be good for eighth in the league if he could play all 48 minutes. But when he takes a breather, the Lakers offense plummets to a lowly 107.6 which would have tied the Detroit Pistons for 26th in the league.
That huge drop off explains a lot of the LA Lakers’ losses over the past couple of seasons.
With Russell Westbrook in tow, the Lakers don’t have to rush James to back on the floor. More than just the rest period for the four-time MVP, having Westbrook around almost assures James that the offense will be run as well as it was before he sat.
1. Russell Westbrook is a safety net for potential injuries to LeBron James and Anthony Davis
Perhaps worried that the injury bug would hit the LA Lakers hard again next season, VP of basketball operations and GM Rob Pelinka decided to pull the trigger on the blockbuster trade for Russell Westbrook on draft day.
After seeing how the Lakers’ stars fell one at a time last season, Pelinka may have concluded that he’s not going to let injuries be an excuse for why they didn’t win a title again.
James played just 45 games last season and just 55 of 82 games in 2018-19. Davis missed 36 games in the regular season, then was sidelined once again in the playoffs.
Russell Westbrook assures the LA Lakers that they can at least count on another star to carry the load regardless of who goes down with a medical issue at any given time.
During Westbrook’s triple-double tear from March 17 until the end of the season, the Wizards’ net rating jumped to 13th (2.2) from being 22nd (-1.6) previously. Note, too, that All-Star guard Bradley Beal missed nine of those games.
Russell Westbrook joining the LA Lakers isn’t a cure for all of last season’s ailments. But having him around definitely solves a number of issues that plagued them all year long.
Guess the Lakers players!
