OKC Thunder: The adaptability of Westbrook’s game as he enters his 30’s
Perimeter scoring
Westbrook is known for his unabashed shooting tendencies – when he is feeling himself, he makes any viewer believe he is one of the best shooters in the league. There is not a single shot that he doesn’t like, as he takes a multitude of pull-up jumpers from anywhere on the court, particularly his bread-and-butter mid-range game.
Despite his ability to finish at will at the rim, Westbrook tends to take far too many long-range two pointers. Throughout his career, Westbrook has taken a whooping 34.9 percent (5.23 attempts) of his 2-pointers between 10 feet to under the 3-point line, while shooting an underwhelming 39.1 percent. The table below shows Westbrook’s shot selection throughout his career.
| % of | % of | % of | % of | % of | % of | FG% | FG% | FG% | FG% | FG% | FG% | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | FG% | 2P | 0-3 | 3-10 | 10-16 | 16 <3 | 3P | 2P | 0-3 | 3-10 | 10-16 | 16 <3 | 3P |
| 2011-12 | .457 | .845 | .291 | .152 | .190 | .212 | .155 | .482 | .631 | .358 | .404 | .437 | .316 |
| 2012-13 | .438 | .805 | .337 | .128 | .141 | .199 | .195 | .466 | .609 | .289 | .398 | .387 | .323 |
| 2013-14 | .437 | .729 | .331 | .091 | .137 | .171 | .271 | .482 | .592 | .264 | .444 | .415 | .318 |
| 2014-15 | .426 | .804 | .346 | .105 | .169 | .184 | .196 | .457 | .580 | .310 | .402 | .363 | .299 |
| 2015-16 | .454 | .764 | .377 | .110 | .171 | .106 | .236 | .503 | .596 | .409 | .429 | .392 | .296 |
| 2016-17 | .425 | .700 | .293 | .067 | .171 | .167 | .300 | .459 | .576 | .305 | .434 | .345 | .343 |
| 2017-18 | .449 | .807 | .375 | .072 | .151 | .209 | .193 | .485 | .611 | .306 | .382 | .394 | .298 |
| 2018-19 | .489 | .854 | .526 | .044 | .153 | .131 | .146 | .556 | .681 | .167 | .381 | .389 | .100 |
| Career | .436 | .813 | .352 | .112 | .164 | .185 | .187 | .465 | .583 | .325 | .396 | .386 | .309 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 11/18/2018.
In contrast, Khris Middleton who is one of the better mid-range shooters in the league shoots
roughly 38.7 percent (3.75 attempts) of his two-pointers from the same region, while connecting at a 45.7 percent clip.
Middleton is far and away more efficient from this area while taking fewer shots than Westbrook.
Shooting awareness
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A simple adjustment Westbrook can make is to substitute some of his mid-range attempts for 3-pointers. This will not only aid his efficiency as he ages, but it will do wonders for him being an off-ball threat as a catch-and-shoot producer.
Looking at his 3-point conversion of 30.9 percent, it is clear he already takes more shots than he should from beyond (on 3.4 attempts), particularly when the majority are contested and dribble pull-up
The league has seen shot transformations before, most notably with NBA legend Jason Kidd who became a 3-point menace in the latter stage of his career.
Westbrook made two major adjustments and its paying dividends. light. Related Story
With changes to his shot selection, tendencies, and mechanics, Westbrook can certainly improve his 3-point reliability.