With many of their best defenders gone, Lebron and the Lakers are going to have to lean into their offense more this season.
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The Los Angeles Lakers have been known for their defensive identity over the past two seasons. The combination of LeBron James and Anthony Davis alongside a wide variety of 3D role players made them the NBA’s best defensive team since Frank Vogel became the team’s coach, but with so many of their best defenders gone and Russell Westbrook taking their place, the Lakers are going to have to lean into their offense more this season. That’s not going to be easy, as according to James, they are installing an entirely new system to help incorporate and maximize all of their new players.
LeBron James says the Lakers have “a whole new offensive system this year.” https://t.co/TWdoKD5LQP pic.twitter.com/m0FjyWm4Lp
— Silver Screen and Roll (@LakersSBN) October 9, 2021
“We pretty much have got a whole new offensive system this year that we’ve been working through over our practices since training camp started,” James said after Friday’s preseason loss to the Golden State Warriors. “It’s an adjustment for us offensively, just having guys in different positions, having guys in different places on the floor with our new look and what we’re trying to do.”
“It’s going to be a process for us, but I think it will be better off for us in the long run. It keeps the ball moving from one side to another,” James said. “Not much with a dribble but more with a pass. And, obviously, we’ve got downhill attackers with Russ, Kendrick Nunn, myself and Talen.”
That is going to require more movement, both from the ball and the players. Mastering a more precise scheme like that takes time, and it’s worth noting that James’ teams tend to struggle initially in incorporating new players before eventually figuring it out.
| Team | Offensive Rating |
| 2010-11 Heat, first half of season | 109.7 |
| 2010-11 Heat, second half of season | 111.6 |
| 2014-15 Cavaliers, first half of season | 108.2 |
| 2014-15 Cavaliers, second half of season | 111.9 |
James is one of the greatest problem-solvers in the history of basketball. If there is a way to make this offense work despite Westbrook’s deficiencies as a shooter, he is going to find it. It’s going to take time, but fortunately, the Lakers have perhaps the easiest opening schedule in basketball. There will be a cushion for them to work through the kinks. As long as the offense is solved by the postseason, the Lakers will be just fine.
Russell Westbrook took the court for the first time in a Lakers uniform during Friday’s 121-114 preseason loss to the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco, and it surely didn’t go the way that he and the Lakers had hoped. Westbrook played only in the first half, finishing with two points, seven rebounds, four assists and six turnovers on 1-for-7 shooting in 17 minutes.
Four of those turnovers came in just over one minute of game time during a particularly rough stretch of the first quarter.
the Lakers’ newest All-Star seemed out of sorts on offense, unable to finish at the rim or on his few pull-up jumpers. He also failed to attempt a 3-pointer, highlighting the spacing issues that many projected when he signed with the Lakers. Three of his assists came on swing passes to Kent Bazemore for open 3-pointers, and the fourth came on a transition lob to DeAndre Jordan.
