"You watch LeBron's artistry and AD's dominance…He doesn't even fit in the picture" – NBA analyst breaks down the shortcomings of Russell Westbrook, highlights the Lakers' low energy on the defensive end
The Los Angeles Lakers suffered their fourth loss of the preseason on Wednesday, losing 113-118 to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The loss came as a bit of a surprise as LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverley all logged nearly 25 minutes in the game, and the Timberwolves were without the services of Karl Anthony-Towns and Rudy Gobert.
On FS1's "Skip and Shannon: Undisputed," Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe sounded off their frustrations with Westbrook. Russ put up 5/3/4 for the game and missed both of his three-point attempts.
Skip stated:
"You only have a big two, there's no big three. Combined last night, they (LeBron James and Anthony Davis) were 16 of 23, that's 44 points combined and 24 rebounds combined.
"That's going to win you a bunch of games, the issue is, the caveat is, the disqualifier last night is there's no Gobert and no Karl Anthony-Towns, so it was more of a super highway to the basket."
.@RealSkipBayless on the Lakers' 118-113 loss to the T-Wolves:
"You watch LeBron's artistry and AD's dominance, then you fixate on Russ, thinking 'how is he out there?’ He doesn't even fit in the picture." https://t.co/okarQ4GXtR
"...It's almost like what's wrong with the picture because he doesn't fit in this picture because you watch LeBron's artistry and AD's dominance.
"Then you fixate on number 0 (Westbrook) thinking 'how is he out there? Did they just get him off the street and throw him out there?’ He doesn't even fit in the picture."
LA Lakers preseason and what we can tell from it
The Lakers will play their final preseason game against the Sacramento Kings on Friday. With five games done and dusted for the Lakers, let’s break down what can be ascertained from this short but consequential run of games.
One more preseason game 'til the real thing https://t.co/yJzkvsxOcz
For starters, the lineup for the regular season is still anyone's guess. Darvin Ham has tried out five different lineups in the five games they have played, and no two look similar.
Westbrook and Beverley have started in the backcourt twice. However, in only one of those games has either player registered a positive box plus-minus.
A possible Lakers second unit started against the Timberwolves in one of their preseason games and had a box plus-minus score of -12 for the game. Seven Lakers have played in all of their preseason games.
As expected, LeBron James and Anthony Davis have been the star performers. Both have averaged around 20 minutes per game, and have managed numbers of 17.3/5/3 and 19.3/9/2.7, respectively. Both have shot above 40% from the three-point range.
Kendrick Nunn is on track to become the Lakers' third option this season, and has logged 14.3 points per game, shooting 39.1% on three-pointers. Besides the aforementioned players and Lonnie Walker IV, nearly everyone has struggled to log double-digit statlines.
These numbers reflect a truth we are already aware of. LAL are top-heavy and have questionable depth, relying on coaching to augment their bench just enough to hold their own until the fourth quarter.
This, however, is the best they can do with what they have. If either James or Davis gets injured, there are very few on the roster who will be able to pick up the slack and will the team to a win.