Dennis Schroder played the point for the Lakers last season but never quite found a groove in Frank Vogel’s system or playing off LeBron James. Then there was the whole turning down an $84 million extension from Los Angeles only to sign a one-year offer from Boston this offseason for $5.9 million. Meanwhile, the Lakers traded for Russell Westbrook and his massive contract to take over at the point.
Friday night, the Lakers and Celtics played and here were the stat lines:
Schroder: 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, +12
Westbrook: 12 points on 5-of-13 shooting, 4 rebounds, 6 assists, -12
NBC Sports Boston did a walk-off interview with Schroder and couldn’t resist trolling Westbrook and the Lakers in the chyron.
Y'all paying him how much!? 🌚 pic.twitter.com/uGyoJOYDR1
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) November 20, 2021
Well played.
There has been a lot of schadenfreude from fans around the league watching former Lakers thrive elsewhere: Alex Caruso and Lonzo Ball are starting and are key reasons Chicago is 11-5; meanwhile, Montrezl Harrell is putting up Sixth Man of the Year numbers again and he, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Kyle Kuzma are critical to the Wizards 10-5 start.
It’s too early to write the Lakers off (LeBron James just returned from injury), but the early returns on the Lakers’ offseason have not been impressive.
