There’s no telling whether or not Russell Westbrook will be on the Los Angeles Lakers roster come opening day. But what is certain is that the animosity has not completely dissipated between Russ and the team – and arguably the whole world at this point.
Westbrook received a ton of criticism for his campaign last season, both from basketball minds and fans alike. A lot of it was warranted, some of it was hyperbolic amidst a Lakers season that had more problems than just one player.
But while there’s obviously blame to go around for things not working out, the buzz surrounding Russell Westbrook is that he isn’t completely acknowledging his complicity in how things went from bad to worse in LA. That’s what Lakers beat reporter Jovan Buha hinted at during his recent appearance on The Athletic NBA Show podcast:
“From stuff I heard last season, during film sessions he would push back on stuff that was very obvious like, ‘hey, you missed this defensive rotation.’ He did not like being the center of attention in those film sessions.”
It’s no secret that Russell Westbrook struggled on both ends of the floor. While his numbers at a glance were still highly productive as box score digits go, it was definitively one of the worst seasons of his career – a reality he doesn’t seem to be accepting, per Buha:
“I just don’t think he’s acknowledging that. It’s one thing to publicly not acknowledge it, but clearly behind the scenes he’s not really realizing if anyone trades for you, it’s because of your contract and them wanting to get off money and get an asset from the Lakers.
It is not because they want you to be the face of the franchise. They want you to be the starting point guard. Any team that takes him on is facilitating clearing their cap sheet and helping the Lakers. I think he just has not come to terms with it.”
What direction Russell Westbrook’s career goes at this point is anybody’s guess.
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July 20, 2022 at 09:15PM
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Lakers: The harsh reality that Russell Westbrook is refusing to accept - ClutchPoints
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