The consistent messaging from the Los Angeles Lakers this past summer was that the team would be consistently focused on the defensive end. After all, coach Darvin Ham is a defensive-minded coach who heavily valued that end of the floor.
During the offseason, Darvin Ham spoke about point guard Russell Westbrook, challenging him to “get back to guarding at a championship level”. There’s no doubt that a defensive improvement would make Russell Westbrook a much more impactful player.
“We talked in our conversations and the biggest word we used was ‘sacrifice and everything else is gonna flow from there… I want him to set a tone defensively for our team. Just get back to guarding, guarding, guarding… I want him to get back to guarding at a championship level.”
A recent video has put Russell Westbrook’s commitment on the defensive end back into question. The video showed the point guard being disinterested in joining Patrick Beverley’s defensive huddle.
Russ with no interest in joining Pat Bev’s defensive huddle after fouling his man on that end of the floor
(h/t @JacobRude)pic.twitter.com/OrjfhvtZhK
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) October 13, 2022
Of course, one incident doesn’t necessarily mean that Russell Westbrook isn’t committed on the defensive end. It was previously reported by a number of NBA insiders that Russell Westbrook has been doing “many of the little things” that the Lakers wanted him to in practice, notably being “engaged defensively”.
During scrimmages, Westbrook has been doing many of the little things that the Lakers have asked of him. He’s been an active on-ball screener. He’s relentlessly pushing the pace in Ham’s uptempo system, looking for his teammates first and his own shot second. He’s been engaged defensively, hounding ball handlers while adjusting to Ham’s new pick-and-roll coverage.
Hopefully, we see Russell Westbrook play good defense throughout the upcoming season. The Los Angeles Lakers will need him to pester opposing ballhandlers and use his energy consistently on that end of the floor to be a good team, and we’ll see how well he performs defensively during this upcoming year.
Russell Westbrook Could Have A Bounceback Year With The Los Angeles Lakers
Last year was definitely tough for Russell Westbrook, and he struggled to fit in as a No. 3 option behind LeBron James and Anthony Davis. However, he could definitely have a bounceback year with the team under a new coach, and it is hard to see him performing worse than he did last season.
Hopefully, Russell Westbrook has a good year and helps the Los Angeles Lakers make it back to the playoffs. They are definitely a talented team, and if Russell Westbrook plays well, their ceiling becomes much higher.
