Wish we would put him in less iso one on one situations. He is sub par at that. We should try and create scambling from the other team's defense, making the possesion more similar to a fast break for him. Or at the very least run a few screens. He played really well last night, but mostly because he was hitting the mid range and we know that won't always work.
Westbrook’s RAPTOR rating actually went down even more on offense and overall after last night. 7 assists to 9 turnovers. Do people not realize turnovers and steals are the most definitively good and bad plays in the game? Westbrook really is not good man. If last night is the best he can do he shouldn’t be starting on a playoff team.
I agree with your rationale just not the application. If RW attacks relentlessly all year he will be injured and worn out. Come playoff time though, I would love him to take the intensity to the next level and attack the rim every chance he gets and elevate us to a championship.
Westbrook gets much worse against playoff defenses not better. I cannot even imagine what’s gonna happen. Against a team like LAL or LAC he will be defended by centers and Harden will be doubled by his man. If we see Utah I honestly think we get swept or close.
For 40 million you could have 3-5 guys scoring around 15 ppg if you scout well, none are better than WB but together they ar3 None is better than Westbrook but for 40 million you get 3, 4 role players ir more in the Montrezl Harris to Lou Will range. It can bolster a team well. WB and Harden can only play streetball by thmselves. They need serious talent that has to get paid IMO. One of them injures himself, it is prolly all over.
Unfortunately, he IS what he IS. I'm not a WB lover by any stretch. But not much we can do about it now. I believe that the CP situation soured and James wanted CP gone. James, being good buds with WB, knew that he wanted out of OKC. The two being old childhood buds wanted to join forces together again. I don't put this on Morey. I put it on James. There are many who are squawking that Morey is 'wasting' James' remaining time here. But, I firmly believe that James made his own bed here and is going to have to sleep in it.
His efficiency can be ok if he stops shooting 3s. I'd rather him shoot mid-range at this point. He's shooting: 65% at the rim 30% at 3-10 ft 42% at 10-16 ft 35% between 16ft and 3pt line 23% from 3 He's shooting 50% overall on twos which would be the second best mark of his career
Trez and Lou will are severely underpaid so those are poor examples. You guys are putting way too much focus on Westbrook.
This is basically the... Beverly/Trez/Lou vs CP3 argument some made the past few years though. That some people would rather have a bunch of good role players than a solid all-star player. I'd rather have the all-star player because he's a guy that can create his own shot which is a huge skill to have and something that matters like...you don't see many teams win championships without at least two all-star players. It has happened like twice off the top of my head...Dirk's Mavs and Hakeem's Rockets. This is why Morey has always been a star chaser because you need the gravity of a star player and star players tend to make players around them better. What Westbrook offers that those other guys don't is that he doesn't need Harden's help to score... And I think with a few offensive tweaks we can hide his weakness...like, actually try moving him off screens when Harden has the ball. No reason he should ever be just standing behind the 3 point line waiting for the ball, have him moving and a constant threat to the defense.
Westbrook is not broken and doesn’t need to be fixed. First, his hand is injured which would effect his fine motor skills —> passing and shooting. To “fix” him would mean to sit him till his hand is 100% healed and with Gordon/Green out would put unnecessary stress on the rotation. Plus Westbrook is a warrior and would play with no hands at all. Second, coach hasn’t changed anything to help play to Westbrook’s strengths. One would think this would have already happened but it hasn’t. Lastly, the TEAM is not a full strength with Gordon out so others are being asked to do more than normally expected with the rotation and what not a little off. It’s a new team for him he will find his way and when it all comes together it’s going to be great.
Danny Ainge and the guys in Denver are doing it. Of course you have to hope one or two of your younger guys can grow into a special star player. Or special players become borderline superstars. Joker, Jamal Murray, Tatum,.......so on. Siakam, Van Vleet? The Process as Embiid stressed, is very interesting, watching players grow in front of you...... Multiple players and not just Harden. And then add that star veteran at some point. To win big, they also have to hope that opposing stars do injure themselves as the Warriors' players did.
If you just cut out 90% of his mid range shots, I can live with everything else, even if he replaces those mid range shots with 3's rather than drives. Happy with him so far, I expected a very rough start. I have a feeling he will cut down on mid range gradually. My big concern is if we're locked into Westbrook, we will inevitably have to replace Capela with someone who can hit the 3. Westbrook needs more spacing to be effective at driving. That will alleviate a lot of the issues you guys are discussing, especially turnovers and finishing efficiency.
I REALLY liked tonight's game for WB. Now clearly, it was against one of the worst defenses in the league, and against Trae Young who's specifically one of the absolute worst defenders for WB in the league, BUT still, I liked WB's control. 6-11 from the field, in the ideal range for the number of shots he should be taking IMO, only took 1 three which is great, got 7 defensive boards, got 8 assist with only 4 turnovers (2-1 A/TO ratio) That's pretty close to the perfect stat line and night for WB. If he has the self-control to mimic his offense role from tonight, as well as focus on his D, that is the WB I can see actually helping this team.
I was thinking the same thing tbh. I think his performance was overlooked because of the James Harden show. He really created a lot of opportunities for teammates, was great on the boards, attacked the rim nicely, and was relatively selective in his shot distribution. I have no problem him taking 12-15 shots for a full 33 MPG, and it seems like he might slowly be headed in that direction. With that we'd have more efficient and therefore greater value to the Rocket's offense. One can only hope.
You are not going to change how he plays, he already gives up the ball to Harden. He changes how our team moves and plays and that makes it harder for other teams to just defend us on our game plan that we want. He has improved his free throws lately, that is probably the one area i'd like see continue
I don’t think numbers will ever be kind to Westbrook, but there are several factors that make him more useful to us than CP3. First, his style is totally different than James’. It’s a change of pace game that keeps defenses on their toes and prevents them from assuming the same kind of rhythm to the game when James is in versus out. Contrast this to Chris Paul who played a roughly similar slow it down one on one iso ball game as James. Against inferior teams with porous bench units CP racked up incredible +/- numbers, but come playoff time when everybody was playing starters 38-42mpg, it turned out to be fool’s gold. CP3 for the remainder of his playing career is going to be a predominantly regular season type of player. He can’t penetrate or defend anymore, and you can’t aspire to a championship with that 40+M load wrecking havoc on your salary cap. Football is not an exact comparison, but from a coaching perspective it’s like getting Thunder and Lightning in your arsenal. You’ve got your heavy hitter, and then you’ve got your change of pace back. We can run it or pass it. Last year’s Rockets got stale by the end because they were doing the same thing every play. In the playoffs it helps to have a little variety. Most importantly, however, I think the biggest thing is the intangible chemistry factor. By the end of last year, CP3’s constant nagging had worn thin on everyone, and even he was beginning to sulk a bit leading to a shaky outside shot that just could not be depended on in the playoffs. Contrast that to this year’s team. Russ and Harden are boys. People seem to be getting along. There’s no grumblings about PT or shots or who handles the ball. We all maligned WB in OKC but there was something to be said about Westbrook facilitating MVP-caliber seasons from Durant and PG. Sometimes the contribution of a player can’t be quantified by box plus minus or efficiency stats. If the team is doing well and it looks like it can translate to the postseason, then I’m for it.
