Russell Westbrook clearly has no love lost for his former team, the Lakers. The word around the league was that the Lakers are to blame for Russell Westbrook’s downfall. But the 36-year-old veteran seems to feel he can still have the last laugh in the matter.
During the Kings’ game against the Lakers on Sunday night, Westbrook turned up the heat in his game and went at the Lakers’ defenders like he had a chip on his shoulder.
In one iconic moment caught on tape, Westbrook showed a glimpse of his prime days with his peak athleticism and ball-handling skill. At the beginning of the second quarter, he dribbled the ball across the court on transition, crossed over his defender, Jake LaRavia, at full speed, turned around to stare him down while blowing past him for the easy layup.
coast-to-coast with brodie 😤 pic.twitter.com/apDRFpl1cn
— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) October 27, 2025
The crowd went wild as the Kings cut the deficit to 34-36 at the time as they looked to gain momentum on a comeback against the shorthanded Lakers. Westbrook dropped 11 points in the first half, where he did not miss a single three-point shot in his three attempts.
The video went viral on social media as fans felt nostalgic after seeing Westbrook pull off such a move during the game. They took to social media and expressed their opinions on Westbrook’s move.
“Cross over so mean Westbrook swapped destinies with LaRavia.”
“That was nasty.”
“GOAT CROSSOVER RUSS.”
“Prime Russ would have dunked that 💔💔.”
“The Lakers fans are not gonna like this.”
The last time the Kings faced the Lakers, Westbrook was sitting on the sidelines as he had just landed in Sacramento after signing a deal just hours before. He still found himself criticized by Lakers fans after he seemingly refused to sign their jersey.
Westbrook finished the game with 18 points, six rebounds, and six assists. He shot 50% from the field, while shooting 66% from beyond the arc. Evidently, Westbrook tried his best in the game, but he missed four free throws out of his six attempts. For the Kings, Zach LaVine led all scorers with 32 points and four rebounds.
If it were not for Austin Reaves taking over and dropping 51 points, with 11 rebounds and nine assists (54.5 FG%, 60 3P%), Westbrook may have found redemption in this game. However, with solid secondary performances against Rui Hachimura (18 points, three rebounds, two assists, two steals) and Deandre Ayton (21 points, 14 rebounds, two assists, one block), the Lakers somehow defended the late comeback attempt from the Kings to seal this 127-120 victory.
