How the Lakers may circumvent Russell Westbrook’s offensive flaws

The Lakers newly-acquired guard Russell Westbrook — who is set to be introduced by the Lakers at 1 p.m. PT on Tuesday — has key offensive strengths that address some of this Lakers’ squad’s key deficiencies, which I outlined in this piece last week. On the flip side, Westbrook also has some glaring holes, namely his shooting ability from distance and shot selection; like how he shot the highest volume of midrange attempts per game last season in the league.

The question then becomes how can the Lakers potentially circumvent these weaknesses and work around them to maximize Westbrook’s strengths? I discussed some options in the following video.

The development of the Russell Westbrook relationship with this team and his ongoing integration will be a fascinating watch this season on the offensive end, one that I expect to be an ongoing process throughout the season and into the playoffs.

Change never comes easy and often comes with two steps forward, one step back fluctuations but if Westbrook buys into his role, he could become the ultimate glue guy.

Dr. Rajpal Brar, DPT has a doctorate in physical therapy from Northern Arizona University, and runs his own in-person and online sports medicine and performance business, 3CB Performance, in West LA and Valencia, CA in which he further combines his movement expertise and fitness training. He also works at a hospital — giving him experience with patients in the immediate healthcare setting and neurological patients (post stroke, post brain injury) — and has been practicing for 4 years. Brar is additionally training at UCLA’s mindful awareness research center (MARC), has a background in youth basketball coaching and analyzes the Lakers from a medical and skills perspective for Silver Screen and Roll and on his own YouTube Channel. You can follow him on Twitter at @3cbPerformance.