"Russ' Lakers debut was very concerning & it has very little to do with Russell Westbrook" - Nick Wright questions LA Lakers' roster construction
According to Nick Wright, the LA Lakers' opening day loss to the Golden State Warriors had more to do with poor roster construction than with Russell Westbrook's no-show.
Speaking on First Things First following the LA Lakers' loss to the Golden State Warriors, Nick made it clear that the Lakers' front office has done a poor job of making tactical personnel changes that aid Westbrook and LeBron's strengths:
"Russ' Lakers debut was very concerning & it has very little to do with Russell Westbrook. There's a rule of thumb with LeBron James teams: if he's the best 3-point shooter on the court, you've done a bad job building around him. He was the best starting 3-point shooter," said Nick Wright on First Things First.
"Russ' Lakers debut was very concerning & it has very little to do w/ Russell Westbrook. There's a rule of thumb w/ LeBron James teams: if he's the best 3-pt shooter on the court, you've done a bad job building around him. He was the best starting 3-pt shooter." — @getnickwright https://t.co/H0ZxHI4Luk
He further stated that the Lakers have been adding centers like DeAndre Jordan to the mix when both Brodie and James function well without centers on the floor, as it makes for a more spaced out floor for them to operate.
His statements hold weight as LeBron took only one shot from beneath the rim because of the presence of Dwight Howard and DeAndre Jordan in the paint. The King shot 5-11 from the three-point land for a game-high 34 points along with 11 rebounds and 5 assists, and was majorly operating on the perimeter with jumpshots.
Can the LA Lakers evolve into a well-rounded squad as the season progresses?
The level of elite talent that the LA Lakers front office has managed to gather under one roof is as exciting as it is threatening. Even with LeBron James and Anthony Davis combing for 67 points, the Lakers fell to a rather inexperienced Warriors squad on a night where Stephen Curry shot 5-21 from the field.
Despite their streaky offense, they let their opponents drop 121 points and at times looked clueless during defensive half-court sets. Only time will tell if the return of Kendrick Nunn, Talen Horton Tucker, Wayne Ellington and Trevor Ariza will spark changes down the stretch, but the status quo looks concerning.
LeBron's 1st game of Year 19
34 PTS
13/23 FG
11 REB
5 AST
5 3PT
1 STL
1 BLK
And a few impressive highlights
https://t.co/o94vkbNSWG
The roster seems to have placed their star duo under pressure on both ends of the floor, something that was the last thing expected out of the stacked lineup. But one game is just too small a sample size to predict doom in the long run, and hence we wait.