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Six Areas Where Los Angeles Lakers Dramatically Improved Their Offense!

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After an injury plagued season, dismal first round exit, and 24th worst offensive rating, the Lakers revamped their entire roster in an extreme makeover to transform their offense into a potentially lethal juggernaut.

Aside from superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis, 20-year old guard Talen Horton-Tucker appears to be the only other player the Lakers are bringing back from their 2020–21 roster, assuming Marc Gasol’s also gone. The extreme makeover confirms the Lakers didn’t believe they could win with last year’s roster or that they had enough offensive firepower to keep up with the emerging superteam the Brooklyn Nets have put together.

While the Lakers may have ignored players from last year’s roster, they were not afraid to bring back several key players from their bubble championship team, including star point guard Rajon Rondo and center Dwight Howard. They also didn’t hesitate to dip into their own history and bring back several former Lakers players who are excellent fits for what the they need right now, including veterans Kent Bazemore, Wayne Ellington, and Trevor Ariza.

The Lakers upgraded six offensive areas in their makeover: volume 3-point shooting, better playmaking, more lobs and dunks at the rim, enhanced offensive rebounding, faster transition offense, and more shot creators.

1. PLAYMAKING TO FREE LEBRON TO PLAY OFF THE BALL

The Lakers number one goal this offseason was to find a ‘difference-making playmaker’ so LeBron James could evolve from the team’s defacto point guard and to full-time power forward to save energy and extend his career.

The mega trade for Russell Westbrook opened the door for the Lakers to add a legitimate third superstar, something that’s extremely valuable over a long season and empowers them to matchup better against the Brooklyn Nets. Most importantly, the trade allows the Lakers to finally move LeBron James to the four and Anthony Davis to the five, the positions at which they play the best and the team’s lineups excel both offensively and defensively.

While Westbrook exacerbates rather than helps solve the Lakers need for more and better 3-point shooting, the opportunity to add a dynamic third superstar who averages a triple-double like he does could not be passed up. What Russ brings in the form of relentlessness, energy, and explosivelness at both ends more than offsets the additional pressure he brings for more high volume, high percentage 3-point shooting to create spacing.

Re-signing Rajon Rondo, third best player in their championship run in the bubble, completes the Lakers’ plan to upgrade team playmaking not only to reduce the workload on LeBron but also to win the minutes when he rests.

2. VOLUME 3-POINT SHOOTING TO CREATE SPACING

Once the Lakers decided to go all in on a third superstar by trading for Russell Westbrook, Rob Pelinka’s focus immediately shifted to looking for high volume, high percentage 3-point shooters to create spacing.

Assuming Westbrook would play the one, James the four, and Davis the five, Pelinka focused on adding players who could play both the two and three, assuming those were the positions to dedicate to volume 3-point shooters. The Lakers signed six tested and proven veteran 3-point shooters who could play the two or three and who take a high volume of threes and make them at a high percentage to create spacing to unleash their three superstars.

The Lakers’ new corps of 3-point sharpshooters includes Wayne Ellington, who shot 42.2% on 6.0 threes per game, Kendrick Nunn, who shot 38.1% on 5.7 threes per game, and Malik Monk, who shot 40.1 on 5.0 threes per game. Other 3-point shooters include Carmelo Anthony, who shot 40.9% on 4.7 threes per game, Trevor Ariza, who shot 35.0% on 4.8 threes per game, and Kent Bazemore, who shot 40.8 on 2.7 threes per game.

With three superstars who are subpar 3-point shooters, the Lakers are not going to suddenly become a top-ten 3-point shooting team but they have the players to take and make a lot more threes than the last two years.

3. VERTICAL GRAVITY OFF LOBS AND DUNKS AT THE RIM

The Lakers attempted to upgrade their offense after winning their 17th championship by replacing traditional low post centers JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard with offensive centers Marc Gasol and Montrezl Harrell.

Unfortunately, that move undermined the Lakers’ rim protection and also reduced the number of dunks at the rim by all of their centers, including Anthony Davis, Marc Gasol, Montrezl Harrell, and Andre Drummond. During their championship season, the Lakers led the league with 528 dunks. Last year, they had only 342 dunks, which represented a 35% decrease or 186 fewer dunks even though they carried four different centers on the roster.

While there’s no discernable proof that teams who dunk more win more, the Lakers strongly believe their dominating front court, demoralizing dunks, and physical bully ball style of play were part of their championship puzzle. Dwight Howard’s return, DeAndre Jordan’s signing, LeBron James’ move to power forward, and Anthony Davis’ increased minutes at center should all contribute to the Lakers bouncing back and leading the league in dunks.

The Lakers are clearly reverting back to the bully ball and physical play formula that won their bubble championship. They intend to lead and intimidate the league in blocked shots a dunks thrown down a the rim.

4. OFFENSIVE REBOUNDING AND DOMINATING THE GLASS

Just as the loss of McGee and Howard resulted in less rim protection on defense and vertical gravity on offense, the Lakers’ offensive rebounding stats declined with Gasol, Harrell, and Drummond at center last season.

During their championship run, the Lakers were 7th in the league in offensive rebounding with 10.7 offensive boards per game. Last season, with a new center corps, they fell to 17th with 9.7 offensive boards per game. With LeBron at the four and AD at the five and two backup centers in Howard and Jordan who have histories of being aggressive rebounders, the Lakers should be ready for a big bounce back in offensive rebounds.

Dominating the glass offensively can be demoralizing as a team can play great defense for 24 seconds only to see their opponent grab an offensive rebound and get another 14 seconds to attack the defense and try to score. Dominating the glass defensively is the key to the Lakers’ ability to score in transition offense as teams need the ball in order to run. The Lakers’ fast break starts with somebody on the team grabbing the ball and running.

The Lakers’ goal is to dominate the glass at both ends of the court, grabbing defensive rebounds to trigger transition fast breaks on offense and snagging offensive rebounds to generate second chance points on defense.

5. LEAGUE LEADING TRANSITION AND EARLY OFFENSE

During the 2019–20 championship season, the Lakers played at a 101.20 pace, which was the 7th best pace in the NBA that year. Last season, the Lakers pace dropped to 98.85, 21st out of the 30 teams in the league.

The single biggest change the Lakers will experience this season after trading for triple-double point guru Russell Westbrook is a dramatic increase in the team’s pace and points in transition or early offense opportunities. Last season, Westbrook posted a triple-double of 22.2 points, 11.5 boards, and 11.7 assists in 36.4 minutes per game with a league. With his relentless energy, Russ led the run-and-gun Wizards to a league best pace of 104.67.

Besides playing at a faster than normal pace, the Lakers have been one of the most efficient transition teams, scoring on a 3rd best 52.9% of chances last season and on a 4th best 52.2% of chances in their championship run. The addition of Westbrook should only add to the Lakers’ efficiency in creating transition and early offense opportunities. No NBA team can match the Lakers fast break. They will literally reprise their Showtime days.

The Lakers should lead the NBA in transition opportunities and execution with elite fast break playmakers like Russell Westbrook, Rajon Rondo, and LeBron James attacking the rim, dishing out dimes, and finishing dunks.

6. MULTIPLE SCORERS WHO CAN GET THEIR OWN SHOT

The final area of offense the Lakers dramatically upgraded this offseason was adding proven big time scorers other than LeBron and AD capable of getting their own shots off the bounce when games were on the line.

Heading that list of players who could get their own high quality shot when needed are Carmelo Anthony and Russell Westbrook, two veteran scorers with a history of being able to get points for their teams down the stretch. Russ finished with 76.3% of his points scored in isolation and Melo with an 51.7% of his points in isolation. Both are proven veteran scorers with moves and handles to create high quality shots for themselves when needed.

Having two additional stars who are comfortable being isolated with the ball and able to create shots for themselves besides LeBron, AD, and Russ makes the Lakers offense much more dangerous and unpredictable. Teams won’t be able to double LeBron or AD like they were the last two years since they will have to respect Russ’ and Melo’s ability to beat their man off the dribble and create a high quality shot to close out games.

The addition of Russ and Melo have given the Lakers two more star scorers for teams to fear down the stretch of games besides James and Davis. It will be interesting to see whom the Lakers close games with this season.

Four Reasons Why Russell Westbrook Will Lead Lakers to the Championship

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Forget the doubters and haters who claim the Lakers made a big mistake trading for Russell Westbrook to replace Dennis Schroder as the team’s starting point guard because Russ’ subpar outside shooting is a poor fit.

The reality is Russell Westbrook is a legitimate third superstar for the Lakers who brings more than enough to the table to offset any concerns about his shot selection or subpar shooting percentages from midrange and deep. Westbrook gives the Lakers a Superstar Big Three to match the Nets, two superstars who can create a triple-double every game, a chance at a record for points in transition, and a positive net rating with LeBron on the bench.

Let’s take a closer look at what Russell Westbrook brings to the Los Angeles Lakers and the four reasons why he’ll be the perfect third superstar for LeBron and AD and will lead the purple and gold to the NBA championship.

1. LAKERS WILL HAVE A LEGITIMATE SUPERSTAR BIG THREE

Winning in the NBA comes down to superstars and the Russell Westbrook trade finally gives the Los Angeles Lakers the third superstar they desperately need to keep pace in the arms race with the Brooklyn Nets.

The Brooklyn Nets showed last season how important having a third superstar is when competing for an NBA championship. Despite injuries to all three superstars, Brooklyn still had two superstars available each game. Had L.A. had three superstars last season, they may have been able to work around the injury issues that led to their first round upset at the hands of the Phoenix Suns. The third superstar raises a team’s floor and ceiling.

Besides providing insurance against injuries and unique load management opportunities, having a third superstar also gives the Lakers the versatility to create lethal lineups that teams without three superstars simply can’t match. For example, if healthy, the Lakers could easily stagger their Superstar Big Three so they would have three superstars on the court to start and close games and at least two superstars on the court at all times during the game.

A legitimate Superstar Big Three gives NBA teams vital insurance against injuries to their superstars and the versatility to create dominating lineups with multiple superstars against whom most teams have no defense.

2. LAKERS WILL HAVE TWO TRIPLE-DOUBLE THREATS

The Westbrook trade not only gives the Lakers two superstars capable of posting a triple-double every game this season but also enables them to have a ‘difference-making playmaker’ on the floor all 48 minutes of game.

The early offseason reports confirmed the Lakers’ top priority this offseason was to acquire a transcendent top-10 point guard to enable LeBron James to give up the ball and move to power forward and Anthony Davis to center. Turning over control of the ball to Russell Westbrook, the greatest triple-double machine in league history with 184 career triple-doubles, guarantees the Lakers will continue to receive elite playmaking from point guard.

Westbrook’s win-loss record when posting a triple double is 138–46 or 75%. While his overall scoring numbers may decrease, Russ should be able to continue to average a triple-double playing for the Los Angeles Lakers. Assuming Russ plays all 82 regular season games, the Lakers should have a great chance to win more than 60 games during the regular season, which would be their best record since they went 65–19 in the 2008–09 season.

Having two legitimate triple-double threats in LeBron James and Russell Westbrook should dramatically improve the Los Angeles Lakers’ ability to win games during the long regular season and critical playoff scenarios.

3. LAKERS WILL LEAD LEAGUE IN TRANSITION OFFENSE

With the addition of Westbrook, the Los Angeles Lakers are looking to return to the halcyon days of Showtime, when Magic Johnson’s playmaking ignited the greatest fast break transition offense in NBA history.

Adding a superhero like the Flash to a team that already boasts Superman and Batman could be overkill but pushing the ball in transition has become the NBA formula for getting high percentage shots before defenses get set. Teams understand scoring in transition or early offense opportunities have become a necessity when playing teams who have solid half court defenses. Westbrook’s speed and pressure on the rim in transition are unmatched.

In a disappointing last season, the Lakers struggled mightily in transition, finishing 21st out of 30 NBA teams with a pace of 98.85 but they were still 8th out of 30 teams with 1.14 points per game in transition efficiency. With Westbrook running the point, the Washington Wizards finished first last season with a transition pace of 104.67, 1.82 points better than the Bucks, who were the second fastest team in the league with a pace of 102.85.

The addition of Russell Westbrook should enable the Lakers to recreate the halcyon days of Magic Johnson and Showtime and catapult themselves to the top of the league when it comes to transition pace and efficiency.

4. LAKERS WILL WIN THE MINUTES LEBRON JAMES RESTS

The addition of Westbrook will give Los Angeles Lakers an opportunity this season to do something no LeBron James team has been able to do in any of his 19 seasons in the league, which is win the minutes when he rests.

The last two seasons, despite having a second superstar in Anthony Davis, the Lakers still saw their net rating plummet whenever they rested LeBron James. Their production without LeBron hit rock botton against Phoenix. With LeBron James in the lineup, the Lakers posted a +4.8 point differential. When LeBron rested, the Suns destroyed the Lakers, who posted a -46.9 point differential without LeBron during the series, much without Davis.

The Lakers’ problems without LeBron can be attributed to their lack of a ‘difference-making playmaker’ to run the offense when the King was on the bench. The availability of two other superstars clearly changes that dynamic. Being able to play lineups with Westbrook and Davis that can dominate opponents when LeBron James rests could be the biggest advantage having a Superstar Big Three brings to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Winning the non-LeBron minutes could be the biggest game changer the Lakers will reap from trading for Russell Westbrook. Russ and AD plus three high percentage, high volume 3-point shooters could be a lethal lineup.

Lakers and Nets On a Collision Course for Epic Battle of Superstar Big Threes

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Nothing would be sweeter than the NBA emerging from two Covid infected seasons to celebrate its 75th anniversary with an epic battle of Superstar Big Threes between the powerhouse Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets.

The NBA has always been a superstars’ league and the Lakers’ bold trade for Westbrook was just another inevitable step in the steady evolution of player movement that now has superstars openly colluding to create superteams. Never hesitant to swing for the fences or shoot for the moon, the Lakers created a LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook Superstar Big Three to match the Nets’ Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden.

By trading for Westbrook, the Lakers conceded they were unsure they could win running it back with the same roster and confirmed a Superstar Big Three was now the minimum price to compete for the NBA championship. With newly minted Superstar Big Threes, the Lakers and Nets enter the 2021–22 season heavily favored to win their conferences and locked and loaded on a collision course to meet next June in the NBA Finals.

Assuming both teams avoid the injuries that derailed their recent seasons, which superteam and which Superstar Big Three has the better chance of winning the 2022 NBA Finals: the Los Angeles Lakers or Brooklyn Nets?

THE ‘ALPHAS’: LEBRON JAMES OR KEVIN DURANT?

Any analysis to determine who has the best Superstar Big Three has to begin with a comparison of LeBron James and Kevin Durant, the alpha dog superstars who are the Lakers’ and Nets’ team leaders and best players.

The question is whether LeBron James at 36-years old can continue to defy Father Time and deliver yet another MVP level performance or whether the time has arrived for Kevin Durant to take over as best player on the planet. While many NBA pundits have already moved Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo ahead of LeBron James as the best player on the planet, it could be premature to take the best player throne away from the King.

Both LeBron and KD struggled last season with injuries with James playing just 45 of the Lakers’ 72 regular season games due to a high ankle sprain and Durant only 35 of the Nets’ 72 regular season games due to hamstring. James averaged 25.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 7.8 assists in 33.4 minutes per game shooting 51.3/36.5/69.8% while Durant averaged 26.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 5.6 assists in 33.1 minutes per game shooting 53.7/45.0/88.2%.

The 36-year old James won four NBA rings: two with the Heat in 2012 and 2013, one with the Cavs in 2016, and one with the Lakers in 2020. The 32-year old Durant won two NBA rings with the Warriors in 2017 and 2018. LeBron and Kevin are both looking for breakout seasons returning from injuries. The big question is whether LeBron has another championship run left in the tank or whether Kevin Durant will take over as the best player.

Assuming both are healthy, LeBron James and Kevin Durant are clearly the league’s top two superstars right now. Chances are the team who has the best alpha superstar is likely to be the team that wins the 2022 NBA Finals.

THE ‘ROBINS’: ANTHONY DAVIS OR KYRIE IRVING?

Heading into 2021–22, the next most important members of the Lakers’ and the Nets’ Superstar Big Threes are Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving, the co-superstars or ‘Robins’ to LeBron James’ and Kevin Durant’s Batmen.

While Davis and Irving are their team’s second options, they are also both proven superstars who have championship resumes and rings to prove it. Both have the talent and mentality to be the best player in a playoff series. Both won championship rings as ‘Robins’ to LeBron James ‘Batman.’ Anthony won his championship ring playing with Lebron and the Lakers in 2020 while Kyrie won his playing with LeBron and the Cavaliers in 2016.

Davis and Irving, much like James and Durant, are looking to bounce back from injury riddled last seasons. Davis played in just 36 of the Lakers’ 72 regular season games while Irving played in only 54 of the Net’s 72 games. Davis averaged 21.8 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists in 32.3 minutes per game shooting 49.1/26.0/73.8% while Irving averaged 26.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 6.0 assists in 34.9 minutes per game shooting 50.6/40.2/92.2%.

Should alpha superstars LeBron James and Kevin Durant battle to a draw, Anthony Davis or Kyrie Irving could easily emerge as the superstar who wins Finals MVP for the championship Los Angeles Lakers or Brooklyn Nets.

THE ‘CATALYSTS’: RUSSELL WESTBROOK VS. JAMES HARDEN?

The key to whether the Lakers or Nets win the NBA championship could depend on the performance of Russell Westbrook or James Harden, two enigmatic superstar guards who are wild card catalysts for their teams.

The 32-year old Westbrook and 32-year old Harden have both been severely criticized and maligned for never having won an NBA championship and for playing a selfish style of basketball not conducive to winning in the playoffs. This despite Westbrook winning MVP in 2017 and being voted to 9 different All-NBA teams during his 13-year career and Harden winning MVP in 2018 and being voted to 7 different All-NBA teams during his 12-year career.

As third wheels, Westbrook and Harden are the members of the Lakers’ and Nets’ Superstar Big Threes who will be forced to make the biggest sacrifices to their games in terms of fewer touches, shots, and possibly playing time. Russ averaged 22.2 points, 11.5 rebounds, 11.7 assists in 36.4 minutes per game shooting 43.9/31.5/65.6% while James averaged 24.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, 10.8 assists in 36.6 minutes per game shooting 47.1/36.6/85.6%.

There’s a possibility the 2021–22 NBA championship could come down to how well Russell Westbrook and James Harden filled their roles as catalysts and figured out exactly what they needed to do for their team to win.

THE ‘CHAMPS’: LOS ANGELES LAKERS OR BROOKLYN NETS?

While basketball is a team game, the 2022 NBA Championship will likely be won by the team whose superstars play the best. That’s why pundits expect the Lakers and Nets with their Superstar Big Threes to be in the Finals.

The pundits believe the Nets’ Superstar Big Three of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden may be the best superstar trio in the history of the league with three elite scorers who can get buckets at all three levels. Meanwhile, those same pundits see the Los Angeles Lakers’ Superstar Big Three of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook as flawed, primarily because Davis and Westbrook are subpar 3-point shooters.

The Lakers’ and Nets’ Superstar Big Threes appear to be fairly matched when it comes to combined points, rebounds, and assists. The Nets are obviously better offensively while the Lakers probably better defensively. Right now, the Nets are favorites because of their elite 3-point shooting but the Lakers’ Superstar Big Three have the size, length, physicality, and athleticism to bully and dominate Brooklyn in the paint and on the boards.

We’ll get a better feel during the season whether the Lakers or Nets will finish as favorites. For certain, the arms race between these two teams is far from over and both will be looking to make moves at the deadline.

Russell Westbrook’s Mamba Mentality Could Lead Lakers to a Championship!

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The BIG question I have been asking myself is what is the Lakers plan for the center position? Here are what appear to be the three possible options.

1. AD starts or plays half the time at the five like the title season?

2. Frank actually starts Dwight or DeAndre in a screwball version of JaVale McGee to start each half?

3. They keep three centers besides AD and Marc Gasol starts as this year’s JaVale McGee.

No way any option but #1 makes good sense with Russ at the point. This is the BIG cunnundrum facing the Lakers.

How Westbrook Changes Everything for James, Davis, and the L.A. Lakers!

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Every so often, a professional sports team will make a move that catches everybody by surprise and dramatically changes everything the team does on the court from whom they start, how they play, and what’s their ceiling.

That’s exactly what happened with the Los Angeles Lakers, who shocked everybody by making a move nobody thought they had the guts or trading chips to pull off: trading for Russell Westbrook to be their third superstar. Panned by the pundits, the Westbrook trade has been as polarizing and controversial as any trade by the Lakers in their storied history, leading the critics to declare LeBron James has won his last NBA championship.

But sometimes, trades have bigger consequences than swapping players. In Russell Westbrook, Los Angeles gets a superstar player who’s the catalyst for totally changing the Lakers’ overall roster construction and style of play.

The Westbrook trade changes everything for the Los Angeles Lakers. Russ not only allows the Lakers to take the ball from LeBron James and move him to the four but also to move Anthony Davis from the four to the five.

Russell Westbrook’s arrival in Los Angeles cleared the way for the Lakers to finally double down on the small ball lineup with LeBron James at the four and Anthony Davis at the five they rode to last year’s bubble championship. After two years of pandering to Davis’ preference to play the four to avoid the physicality of the five, the Lakers finally seem to be embracing the idea that it’s time for Anthony Davis to play center and the Lakers to go small.

Heading into the offseason, early word came via New York Times reporter Marc Stein that the Lakers were looking for a ‘difference-making playmaker’ so they could move LeBron James to the four and Anthony Davis to the five. Then came news two weeks before free agency that Russ had met with LeBron and AD in Los Angeles to discuss the possibility of the Lakers trading for him to create a Superstar Big Three to match the Brooklyn Nets.

Once free agency started, Westbrook decided he did want to join the Lakers and asked Wizards’ GM Tommy Shepherd to trade him to Los Angeles. Tommy called Rob and the rest is history: Russell Westbrook is a Laker.

Aside from being a huge upgrade over Dennis Schroder at point guard, the other benefit of the Westbrook trade is it enables the Lakers to change their style of play and embrace their version of small ball on steroids.

While critics are eager to point to Westbrook’s poor jump shooting from midrange or deep, they ignore the other major changes Russ will bring to the Lakers, including his relentless style of play and full throttle pace. Most importantly, Russ taking over as primary playmaker frees up LeBron to move to power forward, the logical position for him as he ages, and Davis to the five, which has always been his best position at both ends of the court.

Starting a front court with LeBron at the four and AD at the five gives the Lakers the most athletic and mobile front court in the league with two superstars who can score at all three levels and defend all five positions. The small ball lineup with AD at five also allows the Lakers to start two high percentage, high volume 3-point shooters like Kendrick Nunn and Wayne Ellington to give them the spacing they need with Russ playing the one.

The addition of Westbrook is the catalyst the Lakers needed to transform their new roster into the biggest, baddest, and most physical version of a small ball lineups the NBA has seen since the Warriors’ ‘Death Lineup.’

The Los Angeles Lakers have never been afraid to swing for a home run or shoot for the moon. This is the franchise known for pulling off mega trades for superstars like Kareem Abdul- Jabbar, Pau Gasol, and Anthony Davis.

That’s why nobody should be surprised by the Lakers’ blockbuster trade for Westbrook, the enigmatic superstar point guard who was unable to win a championship playing with Kevin Durant, James Harden, or Bradley Beal. Having been disappointed by Schroder, the Lakers knew they needed a superstar point guard if their plan to take the ball out of LeBron James hands was going to have a chance to succeed. Enter Russell Westbrook.

Russell Westbrook is not just an All-Star point guard. He’s a future HOFer, relentless rim attacker, virtual triple-double machine, one-man fast break, and transcendant playmaker who changes everything for the Lakers.