Russell Westbrook has gone through a lot in the last year or so. There was jubilation at first when he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers but all the joy and excitement went away rather quickly.
The Lakers kept losing as they finished last season with a 33-49 record as Westbrook struggled to fit alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis. There was some chatter regarding Westbrook being traded and the rumors went into overdrive in the offseason. It got to the point where it seemed inevitable that Russ would get traded but in the end, nothing happened.
Darvin Ham Praises Russell Westbrook For Staying Professional Amid Trade Rumors
Westbrook clearly wasn’t happy with the situation and expressed his frustration at times, but the one thing he never did, was cause problems behind the scenes. The Indiana Pacers were one of the teams that were touted as a potential trade destination for Westbrook and before the Lakers played the Pacers on Monday night, head coach Darvin Ham praised Russ for his professionalism when asked about his name being a part of rumors.
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No injury updates from @LakersReporter or Darvin Ham! 🥳 pic.twitter.com/2VpeY950w3
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) November 29, 2022
“I can tell you this. Russ is a true professional. He’s shown up to go to work, as well as all of our players, and those guys that handle it that way I see have the most success. When you’re not wearing it on your sleeve, you’re not getting emotional about it and you’re just doing your job and doing what you need to do. But I can just say this. We’re totally thrilled with the way our current group is progressing and we’re excited about the success we’ve had here recently and we’re just hoping to build on it with the guys sitting in that locker room.”
Westbrook deserves a lot of credit for the way he has handled this situation. A lot of players might have just pouted after all that had transpired but he kept his head down and was hard at work. He further showed his willingness to help the team by agreeing to come off the bench and is flourishing in that role.
The game against the Pacers did not go well for Russ and the Lakers, however. They blew a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter which led to fans being furious. They also felt that both LeBron and Westbrook were embarrassing in clutch time in the game as the team suffered a shocking defeat.
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