The problem with Westbrook is his true shooting was 50% this year. It will always be very difficult to win with a player who is that inefficient but demands an absurd usage rate. I would trade him for picks and young players in a heartbeat.
Bingo.
This is why the comparisons to LeBron aren't really on point. Russ has never been in LeBron's league in scoring efficiency.
LeBron's career TS% is .586, and he had several years in his prime north of 60% -- up to a ridiculous .649 in his peak season with Miami at age 29.
Last year, Russ was 30 - likely nearing the end of his prime. His TS% was *15 points lower* than peak LeBron at .501. That's is just insanely different. His career-best year for TS% was right around league average, at .554, about 9.5 points below career-best LBJ.
(The difference, by the way, was not the number of shots attempted; they've been close - within a few shots per game.)