Lake Show Life
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The worst player to start at every position in Lakers history

By Jason Reed

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 14: Russell Westbrook #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers claps to the crowd prior to the game agains the San Antonio Spurs at Staples Center on November 14, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 14: Russell Westbrook #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers claps to the crowd prior to the game agains the San Antonio Spurs at Staples Center on November 14, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images) /
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The Los Angeles Lakers have had some of the greatest players in NBA history don the purple and gold. For every great player there is a horrible player, though, and the Lakers have a lot of bad players littered throughout their franchise history.

But who are the worst of the worst? We all know about the All-NBA teams, but what about the All-Horrible team? Which five players deserve to make First Team All-Horrible in Lakers franchise history?

That is what we are answering today. There is one caveat, though. Players had to start at least 41 games (half a season) as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Worst starting point guard in Lakers franchise history: Russell Westbrook

Starting things off is the point guard of the current Los Angeles Lakers, Russell Westbrook. Look, there may be some recency bias here but when it comes to starters, Westbrook has to be the worst of the worst.

He certainly is not the least talented but when you factor in things such as expectations, how much the team is paying him and how he impacted the team then it is hard to argue against Westbrook.

The Lakers went from a surefire contender in the Western Conference to missing the playoffs (and play-in) entirely after trading for Russell Westbrook. The Lakers slammed the title window shut by trading for Westbrook. If he was making $5 million the team could just pivot off of him and figure it out. He’s not. He is one of the highest-paid players in the league.

It is not like his numbers are very good, either. Basketball casuals will look at the box score and will have the same argument, “he is almost averaging a triple-double, does this writer know anything!?”. 

What I do know is that Westbrook finished with a -1.6 Box Plus/Minus last season, giving him the second-worst BPM in franchise history among true point guards. Only Kendall Marshall was worse but Kendall Marshall didn’t keep the team from making the playoffs despite being a title favorite.

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