NBA Roundtable: Can Russell Westbrook, Kyrie Irving mesh with new squads?
It's the homestretch of the NBA season, and a few new contenders are looking to ingratiate new pieces, while a few frequent contenders are looking to make one more title run.
This week, our panel of NBA reporters — Ric Bucher, Melissa Rohlin and Yaron Weitzman — take a look at how Russell Westbrook will fit in with the other Hollywood squad, and which teams and players are under the most pressure to deliver this postseason.
1. Which single player is facing the most pressure to finish the regular season on a high note and guide his team to a deep playoff run?
Bucher: The "guide" part is tricky, because my first thought is Kyrie Irving and I still consider Luka Dončić as the Mavericks’ primary guide. But I imagine most people see Kyrie as a co-pilot, which means he has to help keep the Mavs where they are — at the very least — or, ideally, move them up in the standings, and I don’t think that’s going to be easy. As I write this, the Pelicans and Timberwolves are both a half-game back, and the Warriors are one game back of the Mavs’ sixth spot. Catching the Suns, who are a game ahead of them, won’t be easy with Kevin Durant in the fold and Devin Booker back. I would not want to be Kyrie if the Mavs slide into play-in territory. There’s not enough sage in the world to erase the negative energy that would produce in Dallas.
Rohlin: I’ll say this: The player who might be putting the most pressure on himself to guide his team to the playoffs (not a deep run, just the playoffs) is LeBron James. He recently said of the stretch run: "It’s 23 of the most important games of my career for the regular season." James has been playing MVP-caliber basketball at age 38, putting up unprecedented numbers for someone in the 20th season. For him to miss the postseason two years in a row would be not only a supreme letdown for him, but for the entire league. As James himself said, "It's just not part of my DNA."
Weitzman: James Harden. He’s an all-time great player who, if you ask fans to tell you the first thing that comes to mind when mentioning him, a big chunk would say, "playoff failures." And it’s not just fans, either — just look at the fact that he didn’t make this year’s All-Star team, despite putting up worthy numbers (21.6 points and a league-best 10.7 assists per game) for a contending team. This spring could be Harden’s last shot to rewrite this narrative.
2. Which current playoff team is most in win-now mode, meaning their championship window could officially close after this season?
Bucher: Golden State Warriors — if we believe that window is still open now. I’m going to say it is, just because they pulled it off last year when right around this time they were in the same state: concerned about Steph Curry's health and essentially a .500 team. But they weren’t really able to resolve their bench problems at the deadline, they are not working with the same cushion they had last season, and even though the numbers don’t seem to reflect it, Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins don’t appear to be having the same impact they had a year ago.
Rohlin: I agree with Ric. This could be the last season we see Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green play together, unless they win a championship. Meaning, this could be the end of the most recent NBA dynasty, which won four NBA championships in eight years. The pressure is on this team to go all the way — or else.
Weitzman: The Milwaukee Bucks. No, Giannis Antetokounmpo isn’t going anywhere, but the team around him is, well, old. Jrue Holiday is 32 with tons of miles on his legs. Same goes for the 34-year-old Brook Lopez. They’ve basically given away all their draft picks to build this team around Giannis (which they were right to do). And then there’s Khris Middleton, who’s a free agent after this season. In other words, this might be the last chance this current Bucks core has to capture a title before having to take a step backwards to reset.
3. What are your expectations for the Clippers now that they’ve signed Russell Westbrook? Will they become better or worse?
Bucher: I wish I could be more optimistic, both for Russ and the Clippers, but I find this addition as confusing as when the Lakers made it. And didn’t they just go through this with John Wall? Both John and Russ need to be ball-dominant to be effective, and the Clippers simply have better players and playmakers to give the ball. I can’t see him in a starting lineup with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Eric Gordon and Norman Powell are both better floor spacers and spot-up shooters. Terance Mann and Marcus Morris are better defenders. So is Russ going to be happy with spot minutes if it comes to that? It’s not as if he’s joining a team that is already in sync and has spent the whole season together, either. They have other moving parts to figure out — adding one more to the list, especially one whose potential contribution is not clear to see, doesn’t seem all that smart.
Rohlin: I think Russ will work much better for the Clippers than the Lakers. The main reason? He’ll be surrounded by shooters. When he attacks the basket, he’ll finally have guys to dish it to who can convert the open shot. That will automatically make his skill set far more effective on the Clippers than it was on the Lakers, which, as LeBron said, sorely lacked lasers before the trade deadline. Westbrook will help fill the Clippers’ hole at the point guard position. He has previously played with George, who made a big push for the Clippers to acquire him. And he’s desperate for a fresh start. I think this could be a much, much better fit.
Weitzman: Russell Westrbrook has given us no indication in recent years that he has any ability or desire to slide into a supporting role. Also, is he a good fit with the Clippers? Well here’s what Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank told reporters after the trade deadline when asked about what sort of point guard the team was looking to add (again, this was before the team signed Westbrook?): "Invariably, what's important is, whether they're a point guard or not, we need someone that won't be played off the floor defensively, someone who can share the ball responsibilities, but not yet be so ball dominant. You know the ball is going to be in Kawhi and PG's hands about 60 percent of the time, so it's a delicate balance."
Does that sound like Westbrook? I’m betting against this.
4. Coming out of the All-Star break, who is the favorite to make the Finals out of the East: conference-leading Boston, the Bucks (winners of 12 straight) or another team?
Bucher: It has to be Boston simply because of the injury to Giannis Antetokounmpo. If Giannis were fully healthy, I’d still say Boston should be the favorite, but I picked the Bucks at the start of the season to come out of the East and I have no reason to change now. Overall, they have a better squad than they did a year ago. A case can be made that the Celtics do, too, with the addition of Malcolm Brogdon. But I still am not 100 percent confident Jayson Tatum can and will deliver when it matters most. I don’t have that concern with Giannis.
Rohlin: I’m going with the Celtics. They have been atop the league all season. They know what it takes to reach the championship round. And they’re desperate to go all the way after they fell to the Warriors last season in the Finals. Jayson Tatum has grown by leaps and bounds this season and I think he’ll really shine on the league's biggest stage. The Bucks could win it all, but the injury to Giannis makes me a bit dubious at this point.
Weitzman: It wouldn't surprise me if the Bucks or Sixers made the finals, but the Celtics have to be the favorite. They’re so deep and so versatile, and they’re great on both ends of the floor. They really have no weakness. Beating them in a seven-game series is going to be tough, and if they can hold onto the No. 1 seed, then they’ll have an easier path, too.
5. What have you so far taken away from the Luka Dončić-Kyrie Irving combo in Dallas?
Bucher: That they’re committed to sharing the ball and making it work offensively, which is a good sign, especially at the end of games. But also that they have to figure out exactly how they do that, because the only two games they’ve played together so far were both lost because they couldn’t execute well enough in the final minutes. The general feeling I get is that Luka and Kyrie will get their numbers, but the deciding factor is how they incorporate the supporting cast and whether it is capable of covering for Kyrie and Luka’s defensive deficiencies. I have a sneaking suspicion I know the answer, but I’m going to keep an open mind because it’s not as if a half-dozen teams in the West don’t have to answer similar questions.
Rohlin: It’s too small of a sample size to really deduce much. But I’ll say this: I heard Kyrie Irving discuss it a lot during All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City, and he appears committed to trying to do whatever possible to make this work. He alluded to having a lot of personal struggles with Brooklyn and wanting to look forward. His tenure with the Nets was filled with a huge amount of self-created controversy. Here’s to betting Irving locks in and plays the role of the good soldier for the final 20-something games of the season, which could mean great things for Dončić and the Mavs.
Weitzman: The duo form an incredible offensive pairing, and are going to be nearly impossible to stop. They’re also going to give up a ton of points. But when it comes to Kyrie, we have enough evidence to know that to assume that just because things are going well means they will continue to do so is, well, foolish.
Ric Bucher is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. He previously wrote for Bleacher Report, ESPN The Magazine and The Washington Post and has written two books, "Rebound," on NBA forward Brian Grant’s battle with young onset Parkinson’s, and "Yao: A Life In Two Worlds." He also has a daily podcast, "On The Ball with Ric Bucher." Follow him on Twitter @RicBucher.
Melissa Rohlin is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. She previously covered the league for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Times, the Bay Area News Group and the San Antonio Express-News. Follow her on Twitter @melissarohlin.
Yaron Weitzman is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. He is the author of "Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports." Follow him on Twitter @YaronWeitzman.
