In Waiters' case, that's very dangerous. Unfortunately before joining the Heat, Waiters toiled for two teams not known for emphasizing defense – the Getting noticed there meant grabbing headlines from the likes of Under Jim Boeheim in Syracuse, Waiters blossomed as arguably his team’s [NOTE: Heat defenders commit too many reach-in fouls gambling for ill-advised highlight plays.
He gave away looks in transition for the sake of helping his teammates. Rondo is a far more skilled passer than Waiters, but defenses rarely give him passing lanes because they don't trust him to actually try to score.
Waiters didn't turn the ball over once against the Clippers. Lakers head coach Frank Vogel is getting his first real look at Smith and Waiters …
He was far too aggressive in trying to make big plays, over-helping and giving up clean looks through some odd decision-making.
But the real value Waiters provides isn't solely in his scoring.
It doesn't matter that these aren't assists, and it doesn't matter that they aren't flashy.
Defenses know he is a threat to score from anywhere, and they treat him as such. Even when the 3s aren't going in, his willingness to take them creates more space on Davis post-ups, a critical element of the Lakers' LeBron-less offense. Rondo's weakness as a finisher limits the Lakers in basic actions.
LeBron has a history of bringing the best out of players with checkered pasts, and the CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc.
Still, the team numbers held firm.
Compare that to the way Waiters engages an entire defense … The Lakers generate easy shots. Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe.
Dion Waiters. An analytically-inclined version of Waiters just makes it harder to double Davis there.
Waiters didn’t push the … Dion Waiters dribbled down the floor as the Los Angeles Lakers played the Dallas Mavericks on July 23 in their first scrimmage. He's improved since joining the Lakers, but at 60.6 percent for his career, he's on the bottom of the point guard totem poll. Not a single mid-range jumper to be seen from a player who, in his career to this point, dedicated 22.6 percent of his shot attempts to 2-pointers beyond 16 feet.