Russell Westbrook has been the most questioned of the Lakers' players this season. Some people say that he plays diligently on the field, has a high attendance rate, and constantly adjusts himself. Some people also say that Wei Shao hurt the team on the court, he is incompatible with the Lakers' style, and the projection performance is even worse, leaving the Lakers without space. Regardless of Westbrook's performance at the beginning of the season, today he is probably the best on the team. He could leave the arena with his head held high.
Today the Lakers challenged their old rival Warriors on the road, and Westbrook was eager to win and played very hard. He scored 19 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists, shot 53.8% from the field, and hit +2 all four free throws, and was the only player with a positive plus-minus value in the Lakers' 5 starters. And in the whole game, Wei Shao only made 1 mistake. James had 4 turnovers today, and Curry on the other side had a total of 2 turnovers.
In this game Westbrook really tried his best, he did everything he should have done. He was very determined when he broke through, and he was not soft when he had a shooting opportunity. Today he hit a three-pointer from the perimeter and hit a 50 percent shooting percentage, and in the crucial 4th quarter, Westbrook used his physical advantage several times to force a breakthrough to create a lethal for the team. For example, in the 4th quarter, Westbrook drew the Warriors' defensive attention to a breakthrough to assist and score for his teammates. And he protected rebounds many times. At one point in the 4th quarter, Westbrook scrambled for a crucial offensive rebound, but unfortunately the ball was competed for by multiple people. Wei Shao failed to take it.
Throughout the 4th quarter, Wei Shao's playing style was very reasonable, smoothly dribbling the ball through the half to his teammates, and he was a conscientious running position defense to grab rebounds. In short, Wei Shao's performance today was not black. He played a very nice game. For this game, we should analyze Westbrook with an objective attitude. Wei Shao played a good game, which is indeed commendable. If Westbrook can continue the form and style of play of this game in the future season, it will definitely be good news for the Lakers. The Lakers need Westbrook's ball-carrying ability and breakthrough ability to create a third ball-holding offensive point for the team, greatly relieving the pressure on James and Davis. This game is a good example, otherwise the Lakers would not have been in the lead for a while in the fourth quarter.
The Lakers are also worried about The Westbrook problem, his defense is still good and bad, and sometimes there will still be leakage. His three points are still punctual, and today's three-pointer feels really good. But what about watching the whole season? Westbrook's three-point shooting rate in the last five games is only 20%, before this game, Westbrook has not hit a three-pointer in two consecutive games, and his three-point shooting rate is only 29.8% in the whole season, not even as high as last season in the Wizards.
As the saying goes, the skinny camel is bigger than the horse, and even if Wei Shao goes down, he is also a star player, still has a wealth of game experience and excellent offensive skills. Since the Lakers chose to keep Wei Shao, they believed him. The season is still very long, the Lakers in the first half of the season because of injuries are slower, and now several of the team's main players are in a healthy state. I hope that Wei Shao can integrate with the Lakers as soon as possible, play the best performance, and shut up the doubters. Dear readers, how do you think Westbrook performed in this game today? Feel free to leave your comments in the comments section.