LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, and Anthony Davis apparently have all come together and made a “vow” that they will make their dysfunctional Lakers “Big 3” work next season. Are they just delusional, or do they not realize their “Big 3” is already over?
The Los Angeles Lakers had the most disappointing season in NBA regular season history last year. As soon as word broke out the Lakers were getting Russell Westbrook from the Washington Wizards, everyone pinned them as their 2021/22 NBA champion favorites. Then the 2021/22 season happened.
Finishing 33-49, 11th in the West, and missing out of the Play-In Round capped off the greatest fall from grace of a preseason favorite in NBA history. Oh, and with LeBron James hampered by injuries and forced to carry the Lakers’ burden alone, AD playing only in 40 games, and Russell Westbrook having his worst ever season definitely did not help with the Lakers’ struggles.
Obviously, last season was more than just a fluky disaster. It was a horrific premonition for the Lakers future.
LeBron James is 37 and Russell Westbrook is 33, and neither of them is getting any younger. AD, the youngest of the “Big 3”, is only 29 but has the injury record of an 89-year-old. The man has yet to play more than 75 games in a season. And he has yet to play over 65 games/year in three seasons with the Lakers.
With the Lakers’ selling their future draft picks in acquiring Westbrook from the Wizards and Davis from the Pelicans, the future is a black hole with no light (in the form of high draft picks). They are going to be atrocious for a long time to come.
And everyone in the Lakers organization knows that. That is why they have been fervently trying to rid themselves of Westbrook’s $47.1M cap hit and trade for Brooklyn’s Kyrie Irving to win now. That is how desperate the Lakers are.
But the problem is that no one wants Russell Westbrook anymore. They all realized what the Lakers should have before they traded for the former MVP: he’s declining. This last season of Russell Westbrook’s career has shown why athletes cannot solely rely on their inhuman athleticism forever. Unfortunately for Russell, he did. And now it has cost him.
Never a great shooter, Westbrook has relied on his superb athletic talents to reach the rim before any of the opposing defenders could stop him. In Los Angeles, he wasn’t able to drive as consistently in years past, and it hurt the Lakers offense. He simply couldn’t score as often or as dominantly.
Plus, he practically refused to change his game by not taking more jump shots/floaters. He only attempted 15.8 field goals/game in a Lakers uniform, his lowest tally since the 2009/10 season.
AD is an entirely different story. When healthy, Anthony Davis is one of the most dominating centers/power forwards in the NBA. Putting up 23.2 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 2.3 BPG in only 40 games is elite, especially considering he was injured/carrying a nagging injury throughout those games. But that’s the thing, he only played 40 games. Those numbers are only so good if you can do it across 70-82 games.
AD has shown these past three years he can no longer play a high volume of games.
As for LeBron, I really have nothing bad to mention. He played at an MVP-caliber level last season, putting up his highest ever PPG total (30.3). His only issue is his age and the wear on his body. Most players can hardly make it to 35 as a bench player, let alone playing as an MVP candidate at age 37. But it has come at a cost. LeBron only played in 56 games last year and has yet to play over 70 with the Lakers.
LeBron may only have 2-3 more years left, so it is vital the Lakers win now.
That is why this idea of the Lakers’ current “Big 3” working things out is hilarious. Hopefully, Jeanie Buss and Rob Pelinka have woken up from the LeBron, AD, and Russell Westbrook “Big 3” dream and realized it was just a nightmare to begin with. A nightmare they need to break up.
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