Russell Westbrook has never been an incredible three-point shooter. In fact, many considered that the weakest part of his game. While Westbrook is one of the most incredible offensive players in the history of the NBA, his three-point shooting has been the one thing that has held him back from being truly elite.
This season, Westbrook joined the Los Angeles Lakers. The move was odd, given that the Lakers really needed three-point shooting, after being the worst three-point shooting team in the NBA last season. But they felt that he was the only superstar that they could realistically get.
And while his percentage this season is by no means great, he is still shooting better than some of the NBA’s better shooters. In fact, Russ actually has a higher three-point percentage right now than Luka Doncic, Trae Young, and Bradley Beal.
Fun fact — This season Russell Westbrook is shooting:
Better than Steph, Booker, Spida and Fox on overall FG%.
Better than Dame, Trae, Beal and Luka on 3P%. pic.twitter.com/HMUZlVA7dU
— StatMuse (@statmuse) November 5, 2021
Three-Point Percentage So Far This Season:
Russell Westbrook: 26.3%
Luka Doncic: 25.4%
Trae Young: 25.5%
Bradley Beal: 24.5%
Via: Statsmuse
Russ made 50% of his three-pointers last night against OKC, going 3-6. But his performance was not enough for the Lakers to hold off the Oklahoma City Thunder. And he did make a pretty serious error during the closing stages of the game that cost the Lakers a potential victory.
For the Lakers, they will be without LeBron James for at least the next week, as he tries to recover from another injury setback. But this is one of the reasons they brought in Russ. He is their third superstar and is capable of taking over for James when it comes to ball-handling responsibilities in his absence.
The Lakers will hope, despite the loss, that Russ’ performance from the three-point line last night is a sign of things to come. While he isn’t a spectacular three-point shooter if he can make his shots above 30% for the season, it could be good for them going forward.
