"I can see a scenario where the Lakers are better with Pat Beverley starting" - NBA analyst describes LA Lakers' dire situation regarding Russell Westbrook
How new LA Lakers coach Darvin Ham will line up his backcourt that now features rivals Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverley is heavily anticipated. Westbrook was a glaring misfit last season while Beverley, on paper at least, seems to be the perfect fit for the Lakers.
NBA insider Ric Bucher, on “The Odd Couple” podcast, sees only one way for both guards to coexist and help the Lakers' cause. It’ll take a huge sacrifice from Russ as he could be asked to do something he’s never done in his career before.
“I can see a scenario where the Lakers are better with Pat Beverley starting and Russell Westbrook running the second unit coming off the bench,” Bucher said. “I just don’t know if Russell Westbrook can stomach the idea of Patrick Beverley starting over him.”
If Russell Westbrook stays on the Lakers he has to come off the bench and try to be the greatest 6th Man of all time. There’s simply no other way he fits.
Ham reportedly asked Westbrook to make his biggest impact on defense and give the offense what’s lacking. The LA Lakers’ new shot-caller is effectively asking “Russ” to play like Beverley.
With “Pat Bev” in the lineup, Ham doesn’t have to transform Westbrook into something else. He could just plug the former LA Clippers guard into the starting unit.
Westbrook fiercely pushed back last year when he was benched by former coach Frank Vogel in favor of Austin Reaves and Stanley Johnson. It’s not difficult to imagine how he’d take it against Ham if he were to come off the bench for his bitter rival.
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Mr. Triple-Double’s best use makes more sense if he leads the bench mob. He would be the ball-dominant playmaker, a seeming prerequisite to his impact in any game. Ham could simply allow “Russ to be Russ” and not remove the rhythm of the offense, with LeBron James presumably getting a rest.
The LA Lakers don’t have a surplus of talent to just dismiss Russell Westbrook
Russell Westbrook’s dismissal seems to be a popular idea after the Patrick Beverley trade. If “Russ” doesn’t do what Ham asks, several analysts have already urged the Lakers to pay Westbrook and then send him home.
According to Ric Bucher, the LA Lakers are not in the best position to simply remove the nine-time All-Star from the roster:
“Anybody who thinks that the Lakers are better by just getting rid of Russell Westbrook? I’m not with you. They don’t have enough talent to sacrifice that, and they’re not gonna be able to trade him. …
“Tell me who wants that contract!? Some people might pick him up, maybe? But they’re not gonna give anything up for him.”
Darvin Ham "remains determined to carve out a real role for Russ"
"The single best exit strategy out from under Russell Westbrook is to pay him and send him home. Addition by subtraction." — @RealSkipBayless https://t.co/vNFABQbaoF
Westbrook, Beverley and Ham have supposedly connected since the trade was completed. The coach has already informed them of his plans to have both players on the floor in certain situations. Whether that involves both of them starting or one coming off the bench remains a subject of speculation.
The LA Lakers front office is confident that having Westbrook and Beverley will help the team. Most analysts have been calling this wishful thinking, given the animosity between the two.
Before the start of last season, the LA Lakers were also confident that the Westbrook experiment would work before it exploded in their faces. They now seem to harbor the same level of certainty that the Westbrook-Beverley backcourt will flourish. The Lakers will desperately hope they are right this time.