Why Russell Westbrook Is Perfect For Sixth Man Role With Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers have a dilemma at the point guard spot going into the 2022-23 NBA season after they acquired Patrick Beverley from the Utah Jazz.

This prompted rumors of the Lakers being more open to the idea of trading Russell Westbrook during the offseason in order to acquire depth pieces that will make them an even more formidable contender and potentially enter the playoffs.

However, that idea is out of the window for now as NBA insider Brian Windhorst reported on the latest episode of his podcast.

"Based on the executives I'm talking to, they believe that the Lakers have come to the conclusion that they're not going to trade Westbrook now, because they don't like any of their offers and they're going to try and make the best of it and see what happens," he mentioned.

The thought of the Lakers running things back with Westbrook again at point guard is an interesting proposition for the fans to say the least since last season failed to live up to lofty expectations.

For 78 games, Westbrook was averaging 18.5 points on 44.4% shooting from the field, 7.4 rebounds, 7.1 assists, and a steal over 34.3 minutes along with 3.8 turnovers.

The numbers do point to him still being a very capable lead guard, but what new Lakers coach Darvin Ham might want to take a look at is to bring him off the bench and have Beverley take the starting point guard role.

It may not make sense outright since Westbrook was brought in to serve as a complementary piece alongside the frontcourt duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but his lack of floor-spacing could lead to the change.

When comparing the pair's three-point percentages, Beverley beats out Westbrook by a mile as the former is averaging 37.8% and the latter at a measly 30.5 percent.

The Lakers can ill afford to have a non-shooter as their lead guard since it greatly limits their offense.

It should be noted that when James is on the court, he is the designated playmaker for the Lakers as he has been at this point in his career, so they can potentially experiment with Westbrook off the bench.

This opens the two-guard spot up for battle during training camp and there is a chance that sophomore star Austin Reaves could get it.

Westbrook is nearing the wrong side of 30 and him taking a sixth-man role could give the Lakers some interesting combinations on the floor–all of which coach Ham will take into consideration.