As the season progresses, the Clippers have finally entered the next stage, with 10 wins and 3 losses in the past 13 games. During the same period, only the Orlando Magic was in hotter shape. It also created the league’s second defensive efficiency value and improved the bottom offensive efficiency value to 14th. Everything seems to be getting better, but Russell Westbrook is left in the most embarrassing situation.
About a month ago, James Harden just joined the Los Angeles Clippers. He was out of tune with his teammates. No one could get used to and integrate into his system. After the transaction was completed, the Clippers suffered a five-game losing streak! As the season progresses, the running-in pain period has finally entered the next stage. The Clippers have recorded 10 wins and 3 losses in the past 13 games. During the same period, only the Orlando Magic was in a hotter state. The Clippers also finished second in the league in defensive rating and improved their offensive rating from last place to 14th. Everything seems to be getting better, but Russell Westbrook is left in the most embarrassing situation.
Since Westbrook took the initiative to be benched before the game against the Houston Rockets on November 18, he has not played more than 30 minutes in a single game. He only had 14 minutes left in the game against the Pelicans on November 25. , setting a career-low fourth-low record. In the recent five-game winning streak, except for the early garbage time against the Sacramento Kings, Westbrook got 20 minutes, and the rest were all under 20 minutes. During this period, he averaged 8.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. . In terms of advanced data, Westbrook almost has a negative score during this Clippers turnaround. In the past 13 games, the Clippers’ team net efficiency value on the court is -5.0, which is the worst among the core nine-man rotation. , on the contrary, Harden’s net efficiency has reversed, now reaching 13.5, the highest on the team.
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The reason why Westbrook’s playing time has dropped sharply is not only because he switched to a substitute role, but the bigger key is that he cannot coexist with Harden. The playing styles of the two are simply mutually exclusive, and the relationship has become a pure starter and substitute relationship. They can only choose one of the two, rather than the Big Four or star double backcourt as originally expected. Westbrook needs the ball to use his speed, but Harden likes to hold the ball and play slowly; Harden needs shooters to open up space, and Westbrook’s three-point shooting rate this season is only 27.6%.
In order to cooperate with each other and due to changes in their status, in fact, the two former MVPs have compromised a lot of habits. Compared with the past large number of singles, Harden now tends to pass the ball and deliberately reduces his desire to score. Westbrook has even undergone a major transformation, sacrificing an extremely large amount of ball rights. The proportion of offenses with each touch time of less than 2 seconds has increased sharply from 30.2% last season to as high as 49% in the past 13 games, and the proportion of offenses with 0 dribbles has increased from 27.9. % increased to 40%. It shows that Westbrook is no longer a star player, choosing an offensive mode of more empty-handed running and follow-up rebounds.
Despite this, the extremely poor compatibility between the two is still reflected in the statistics. This season, the net efficiency of the two together is only -12.1, which is the worst among the Clippers’ duos who have accumulated more than 100 minutes.
Head coach Ty Lue understood the problem of running-in between Westbrook and Harden from the beginning. From the early days of the establishment of the Big Four, he staggered the two guards in groups. In the victory over the Golden Nuggets on December 8, Westbrook and Harden were not allowed to be on the same stage for a second. When you were down, he was up, and when he was down, you were up. In the end, good results were achieved. Westbrook’s energy and speed allowed the Clippers to master key defense and rebounds. Harden, as a steady late-game commander, steadily took the helm to win the game.
However, having Westbrook purely as Harden’s backup won’t make the Clippers any better. In particular, the gap in the pace of the game between the two has led to the team’s lack of consistency in the starting and bench lineups, as if two completely different systems are running the same ship. In addition, it is a waste of the capital of the four giants and weakens the ceiling of combat power that should be pursued higher. Therefore, even if the results are sluggish, Ty Lue has continued to try the combination of two-star backcourts, hoping that the Big Four will one day truly complete the running-in.
Of course, the speedboat had already chosen a side. Harden is obviously a point guard more suitable to be paired with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. His conduction ability and outside threat have gradually shown his power. In the past 13 games, the net efficiency of these three stars together has reached the level of 15.1. In addition, Considering the cost of trading Harden, it is imperative that the Clippers move closer to the “Harden system”, and Westbrook will inevitably become more marginalized.
Since Westbrook’s own contract amount is not high, it is difficult to serve as a salary package, and his playing style does not meet the needs of the times. It can be expected that the transaction market will not be very good. Even if someone is willing to take over, I am afraid it will be difficult to exchange for better players. Unless Westbrook personally declares that he wants to leave, the Clippers will not let go easily, but will continue to choose to run in. He will still be a key role this season, but it is different from what was envisioned before the season. The Clippers will no longer build for him. system. We can only hope that Westbrook accepts and explores a new role. Even if he may be benched or even lose the chance to play, his willingness to continue to act as the only spiritual leader of the Clippers is probably the greatest value of Westbrook. Even Stud may not be able to get it. of treasure.
“2023-24 Key Role” Los Angeles Clippers—Russell Westbrook: Regaining Stardom
2023-12-13 17:07:38
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