Russell Westbrook coming to the Los Angeles Lakers was always going to be a bit of a gamble but no one knew exactly how difficult the situation would get for the player as well as the franchise. His production has fallen off a cliff in Los Angeles, as Russ simply isn’t able to contribute to his teams the way he always has in his career. And his play might be affecting the only player on the team that’s actually been excellent.
LeBron James is leading the league in scoring despite being in the 19th year of his incredible NBA career. The only games the Lakers have won recently have occurred when LeBron has scored 50 points, something he’s been able to do twice. However, even he can’t carry the team on his back, and according to the plus-minus scorers, that may have something to do with playing alongside Russ.
As per Statmuse, LeBron has a plus-minus of -5 when he plays without Russell Westbrook on the court. Not great, but not really that bad either. This number plummets drastically and becomes way more alarming when Westbrook is playing alongside him, with the plus-minus falling to a terrible -87.
Seeing as the Lakers have struggled in the first quarters of games as well as the clutch stages, these stats suggest that LeBron and Westbrook starting together isn’t really the best idea at the moment. A lot of this is also down to Westbrook, who’s having such a bad time that he’s been shooting just 9.1% from three-point range since the All-Star Break.
If all of this wasn’t evident, then it would be a different scenario but it looks like the Lakers will have to get rid of Westbrook somehow when the off-season arrives. LeBron James has shown no signs of slowing down and the main objective next season will be building a much better roster around him.
