On January 5, Beijing time, the NBA regular season, the Lakers beat the Kings 122-114 at home, winning 4 of the last 5 games. In this game, Vogel still used a small lineup in the starting lineup, with James playing the center position. But in the rotation, Vogel finally turned on Howard.
In this game, Howard played very well. He played 21 minutes and 35 seconds, 6 of 12 shooting, and had a comprehensive stat of 14 points, 14 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, plus or minus +11! In the first half, Howard played only 8 minutes and had 12 points and 8 rebounds, which was very good.
Howard proved himself in one game, and his defensive ability can still help this Lakers team. In previous games, Vogel would always hide Howard for no reason, which was very puzzling. In fact, Vogel hid Howard more out of strategic considerations.
When Howard comes on the field, Westbrook loses his threat. Because Howard will occupy the interior space, this makes Westbrook lose the possibility of impacting the basket. Once there is no chance to attack the frame with the ball, Westbrook's performance on the court is not as good as Munch, who is paid a base salary. In a way, Vogel didn't use Howard, but actually did it to take care of Westbrook. Unfortunately, Wei Shao himself is not angry, and his performance in the past few games has disappointed. In this case, Vogel began to reactivate Howard.
The performance of this game proves that when Howard came on, Westbrook's performance on the offensive end was indeed very average. In the first quarter, Westbrook shot 1 of 7, and in the second quarter, he hit only 1 goal in 4 jump shots. In this case, Wei Shao's offensive threat is not as good as Munch's, which makes people look very uncomfortable.
In fact, the Lakers have made great sacrifices for Westbrook. James conceded possession and Vogel abandoned Howard under pressure, all in order to find form for Westbrook. If Westbrook still can't play a role in the Lakers, they really should find a way to trade Westbrook.