Los Angeles Lakers: 3 players that will shock the league next season

1. Russell Westbrook

There are a lot of people that are not expecting Russell Westbrook to work out in Los Angeles and quite frankly, I cannot blame them. I am not a huge Westbrook guy myself and there is plenty of reason to doubt his success, especially with his track record.

Westbrook has had some star-studded teammates and despite that, he has not been able to win much since the lone NBA Finals appearance all the way back in 2011. His playstyle, while entertaining and good on paper, does not translate to winning basketball.

That is why it is easy to expect this to fail. Westbrook is someone who needs the ball a lot and loves to play hero ball. That does not mesh well with LeBron James, who is extremely ball-dominant and makes everyone else around him better.

The team is better the more LeBron has the ball. How will that impact Westbrook’s game?

That is a legitimate question to ask and it is fair to be concerned about this pairing. However, at the end of the day if there is going to be anyone in the league that can get the most out of Westbrook and get him to conform to a certain playstyle it is LeBron James.

Russell Westbrook is going to work on the Lakers because it has to work. He knows it, LeBron knows it and the entire franchise knows it.

The Los Angeles Lakers will handle the specific playoff matchups when they get there. When it comes to Westbrook’s overall season, he is going to shock plenty of NBA fans and analysts alike.