After a tumultuous 2021-22 NBA campaign, the Los Angeles Lakers are getting ready to face a new challenge next season following a very entertaining and controversial summer that saw them land a variety of players. After filling up the roster with a bunch of veterans last year, the Lakers tried to bring youth to the squad, although it didn’t make a big difference in terms of quality.
They still keep their Big 3 of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook, but it’s pretty clear that at least one of them could be traded at any moment by the Purple and Gold. Following the additions of Patrick Beverley via trade and Dennis Schroder via free agency, the Lakers now have plenty of guards on the roster, which makes things difficult for new head coach Darvin Ham.
In recent hours, a report by Jovan Buha and Sam Amick of The Athletic suggests that Brodie can become a bench player next season. In the wake of the Dennis Schroder signing and the fact that Patrick Beverley is on the roster, too, the Lakers could make this complex decision.
Yet, while the Lakers have been hopeful the Westbrook experiment might be a success this time, sources with knowledge of the situation told The Athletic that the prospect of Westbrook coming off the bench is being strongly considered.
Patrick Beverley Blasts Report Suggesting Russell Westbrook Will Come Off The Bench
Normally, these reports always bring a lot of controversy to the table, and this time wasn’t the exception. While this possibility has been studied by others, it wasn’t clear if the Lakers would consider it. Many people reacted to that, including Patrick Beverley, who took to Instagram to blast the report.
“Yal be reaching bro. Shit is really funny.” the point guard commented on a Bleacher Report post.
Even though Pat strongly disagrees with that report, it’s believed that the Lakers are willing to make hard decisions to improve their level. Even if that means benching Russ, Darvin Ham will do it, and that could be a magical solution or the beginning of another crisis for the Lakers.
Time will tell what happens there, but as things stand right now, Westbrook is still the starting point guard of the Los Angeles Lakers.
