This season's Westbrook has always been a figure on the cusp of the storm, and indeed playing next to LeBron, the mistake itself will be magnified like an eight-fold mirror, coupled with its own state, it is really difficult to satisfy the fans. If you only look at the performance on the field, once Westbrook is on the top, the damage to the team cannot be imagined, but if you look at the data, the result will only be worse. The Lakers have always given Wei Shao enough patience and support, but the triple-double king still has not clearly identified his own positioning, and Wei Shao's los Angeles road, at least for now, is shrouded in dark clouds. The stats don't lie, let's see what the basics of this season's Westbrook are!
Everyone's requirements for Wei Shao, if it is the kind of peak season, it is obviously not realistic. In fact, to play to the level of Houston, the fans are already quite satisfied. Solid data proves that the performance of Westbrook this season has really fallen off a cliff in the past two years. (Article data as of January 15)
2019-20 season: 35.9 minutes per game, 27.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 7.0 assists, 1.6 steals, 0.4 blocks, 4.5 turnovers, 47.2% shooting percentage, 25.8% three-point shooting rate, 76.3% free throw shooting rate, 49.3% effective shooting rate, 53.6% true shooting rate
2021-22 season: 35.5 minutes per game, 18.7 points, 8.2 rebounds, 8.1 assists, 1.1 steals, 0.3 blocks, 4.4 turnovers, 43.7% shooting percentage, 28.8% three-point shooting percentage, 65.6% free throw shooting rate, 46.8% effective shooting rate, 50.4% true shooting rate
Rationally speaking, that year at Houston was indeed the highlight of Westbrook's last five seasons. There is no harm without comparison, and the score per minute slipped from 0.76 to 0.53, which is a 43.4% drop. 4.4 turnovers ranked second in the league, more than 4 times in 8 consecutive seasons, and the stability can be imagined. In addition to the three-point shooting rate of less than 30% is still unreliable as always, the shooting rate is also reduced to varying degrees. eFG% + TS% is a new 10-year career low, 65.6% of the free throw shooting rate is also an absolute failure for a point guard, the overall shooting rate slipped down 3.5 percentage points. All this seems to have changed in the summer of 2020, leaving the Rockets is a watershed, last season in Washington Westbrook is also criticized, fortunately the final team can also be regarded as entering the playoffs, but it is also undeniable that Westbrook's efficiency is low, but I did not expect that this year is even more outrageously low.
The high-level data actually reflects the confusion of Wei Shao, the offensive efficiency of 106.1, the defensive efficiency of 107.9 are not qualified data, and the net efficiency value of -1.8 is also quite embarrassing. The only thing to be affirmed is the 35.0% assist rate, but the assist-to-turnover ratio is 1.8. Looking at the 14.3 percent turnover rate, only Porter Jr. is the only one in the Western Guard who is higher than that. To be honest, even so, Vogel still showed trust in Wei Shao, with a 26.9% possession rate higher than thick eyebrows, and even three goals had to sigh twice. In the final 5 minutes of the game (the difference is <5), Wei Shao's three-point shooting rate is as low as 14.3%, and the 2.6 score looks good, but the P/M efficiency is only 0.54, look at the old Zhan's 0.85, it is no wonder that Lakers fans are harsh on Wei Shao. 0.6 missteps are also the most deadly, especially at such critical times.
What does it mean that Westbrook is present? The Lakers' offensive efficiency in the same period was 105.7, the fourth-lowest in the league, which was a full 2.6% drop from the season average of 108.4, while the team's offensive efficiency was 112.3 when Westbrook was off the field, which translated into a percentage increase of 3.6 percentage points, which is quite exaggerated. In the average playing time of 35.5 minutes per game, the team's average turnover rate can reach 16.0%, second only to the existence of the Rockets in the whole league, and this data Lakers average is 14.7%, and the average of Westbrook brings to the team is an increase of 1.3 percentage points. Along with that, there is also the team's points conceded rate, offensive success rate, and defensive position rate, which are all data to rely on, and they are also what Wei Shao must face.
How bad Westbrook's shooting this season is, the overall 28.8% shooting rate outside the three-point line, the 6/23 and 9/44 right 45° areas at the top of the arc are all veritable cold zones, shooting only 22.4%, and it seems that only the left and right bottom corners of the three-point shooting rate can be counted, which is a five-to-five shooting rate. The most accustomed shot point is still 45° on the left, and the 31.4% shooting rate, although higher than the individual average, does not reach the league standard level. The mid-range is a nightmare for Wei Shao, the face of the basket attack in the free throw line area only hit 18 shots in 187 shots, the shooting rate is only a pitiful 9.6%, and overall, the basket is 3 feet away to the three-point line in the middle and long distance two-point area, the 75/330 shooting rate is 22.7%, which is really unbearable. There used to be a zombie jumper, and now there is no iron oxide directly.
Killing the inside line is the only way to score that Westbrook can see the effect now, but the 50.0% inside shooting rate is still almost meaningless, the team is not as good as Bradley, Munch and Ariza, it seems that the 9.5 inside score can be ranked in the front, but this is exchanged for nearly 10 shots, the efficiency is not high, and Trae Young is called the Crouching Dragon Phoenix. Westbrook this season is really a bit crotch, the data is on the table, everything is an indisputable fact. Especially in the recent period of time, the presence is equivalent to the team playing one less person, averaging only 7.8 points per game in the past week in 3 games, and the shooting rate is only 20%.
Such a Westbrook, the value of the transaction has also plummeted, it is really difficult to think of which team will be willing to take over, although the fans' trading voices are endless, but Wei Shao basically will not leave Los Angeles this season. With a salary of 44.71 million, the league is third, occupying such a salary space but far inferior to Reeves and Munch, a number of low-salary players, Westbrook really should reflect on it. Next season is 47 million, the Lakers' future variability is almost locked, what miracle does the Purple And Gold Army have? It depends on whether Wei Shao can bottom out and rebound.
Winning the championship is no longer a luxury, but at least the playoffs must be guaranteed. Come on Lakers, take your time, it will always be fine! For Old Zhan, health is the most important.