Positional change by Russell Westbrook could be the key to improving OKC Thunder offense
OKC Thunder positional swap:
In my humble opinion like so many others, I think some of the OKC Thunder’s problems can be eliminated is by moving Russell Westbrook to the shooting guard position. Starting Dennis Schroder at point guard, effectively making Terrance Ferguson the sixth man can improve the team’s offensive output.
Providing an opportunity for Dennis Schroder to run the offense, will open up Westbrook’s opportunities to pick his spots more effectively, and give Paul George more offensive looks as well. The ultimate goal is to boost ball movement and offensive efficiency.
Schroder is accustomed to being a primary playmaker, and in tandem with Westbrook, the ball will move much more fluidly on the offensive end.
| Net | Net | Net | Net | Net | Net | Net | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rk | Lineup | MP | PTS | 3PA | FTA | TRB | AST | STL | BLK |
| 1 | S. Adams | T. Ferguson | P. George | J. Grant | R. Westbrook | 919:06 | +8.2 | -4.3 | +2.1 | +2.8 | -0.6 | +0.9 | -0.9 |
| 2 | S. Adams | P. George | J. Grant | D. Schroder | R. Westbrook | 435:35 | +7.2 | +3.0 | +5.7 | +5.1 | -1.5 | +0.1 | +0.8 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 6/12/2019.
Taking a look at a multivariate analysis of both Dennis Schroder and Russell Westbrook’s efficiency numbers, it’s clear that Schroder thrives whenever he’s on the floor with Westbrook. They both are highly impactful when they have big minutes together.
As per the basketball reference chart (above), many of the key stat categories improve when Schroder replaces Ferguson in the lineup. Ironically this lineup produces fewer assists, but much of this can be attributed to Schroder being the primary ballhandler and therefore Westbrook isn’t assisting at his regular level. More time spent with this lineup playing together could find that stat increasing.
My expectation is that Dennis Schroder will thrive in this role. This will allow players like Jerami Grant and Steven Adams to receive more looks as well.