Why Lakers’ Russell Westbrook is bound for a bounce-back year

It is safe to say that Russell Westbrook is one of the more disrespected, slandered, and misinterpreted players in the league, and last season he saw that more than ever with the Los Angeles Lakers. Westbrook has constantly been critiqued for his style of play more than anything else.

He’s a future Hall of Famer and one of the best point guards this generation has seen, but he often gets viewed more as the guy who struggles with efficiency, lacks shot-making ability, and doesn’t play “winning basketball.”

However, people tend to forget that Westbrook made the NBA Finals with Kevin Durant in Oklahoma City and led a Washington Wizards team with a losing record at the all-star break back and got them to the playoffs.

All player and team personnel courtesy of ESPN*

Lakers additions this offseason

The biggest issue with the Lakers last season was not Russell Westbrook. It was the lack of durability and sustainability amongst the roster that Rob Pelinka created. LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook only played in 21 games as a unit.

They were 11-10 with little to no generated chemistry in those games. Westbrook has success, as does LeBron when surrounded by three and D players. Players who can hit open shots, contested shots, and play solid and stout defense around the perimeter.

The Lakers did not have that last season whatsoever. This offseason, they made moves to fix that glaring hole, and it seems like they’ve done that.

They added Lonnie Walker IV, an athletic wing known for his defense and ability to add a spark to the lineup. He also has formed a pretty efficient jump shot since he entered the league. The Lakers also added Troy Brown Jr, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Max Christie (rookie), Cole Swider (rookie), and recently traded for Patrick Beverley. He is known for his intense defense and amusing personality.

These guys work their tails off on the defensive end and can shoot the basketball. Cole Swider is the only question mark on defense because we haven’t seen much defensive tape on him yet, although Swider has the best and most natural jump shot out of just about anyone on the team. At Syracuse last season, he shot over 40% from three and averaged over six attempts a game.

Steps Russell Westbrook has to take

All of these players will put Westbrook in a much better position to be successful on the court. Westbrook is durable. He appeared in 78 of 81 games the Lakers played last season, which speaks volumes about his work ethic and durability. He plays 25-30+ minutes a night and stays ready whenever he is called upon.

There are things Westbrook will need to improve on. But he doesn’t have to be some superstar player to have a bounce-back season. Suppose he can be efficient with the basketball, limit his turnovers, hit a respectable number of jump shots, and force the defense to play him around the perimeter. In that case, he can quickly return to the Westbrook we saw in OKC.

He won’t have constant triple doubles because the Lakers have two other all-stars on the team. But he could get back to being an all-star in the Western Conference. Nobody can guard Russell Westbrook when he is determined and going downhill to the rim.

He needs to do more of that. Drive and kick action, drive and dump off’s to the interior bigs like Davis and newly acquired Thomas Bryant, and simply finish and attack the hoop with the confidence that nobody can guard him.

Ranking the potential Russell Westbrook trade partners for Lakers

There are three teams that the Los Angeles Lakers could realistically make a Russell Westbrook trade with. In this article, we ranked them.

If the confidence is there for Russell Westbrook and doesn’t waiver, he is as unstoppable as they come. The narrative surrounding him is waiting to be changed, But Westbrook has to be the one to go out and change no matter how arbitrary it may seem.