Wesley Matthews admits coming off bench for Lakers has ‘absolutely’ affected his rhythm

In his first season with the Los Angeles Lakers, veteran shooting guard Wesley Matthews admits that his rhythm has been affected now that he’s coming off the bench instead of being part of the starting lineup.

The 34-year-old Matthews is in his 12th NBA season, but has only started one of the Lakers’ 10 regular season games thus far. That’s in contrast to having been a starter in 729 of his 791 previous regular season contests.

Still, Matthews has enjoyed an improved shooting touch in the early portion of the 2020-21 campaign, connecting on 21-of-45 (46.7 percent) from the field and 16-of-39 (41.0 percent) from beyond the arc.

Matthews’ contributions have helped the defending champion Lakers get off to a solid start, with the team winning seven of their first 10 contests, including a 107-105 home win over the Chicago Bulls on Friday night.

Despite seeing his numbers drop because of his change of status, Matthews is hoping that being with the Lakers will finally help him earn a championship ring.

In his six previous stops around the NBA, Matthews has yet to play in the NBA Finals. That was especially frustrating last season, when he and the Milwaukee Bucks entered the postseason with the best overall record in the NBA, but were knocked out in the second round by the Miami Heat.