Russell Westbrook had a very difficult outing in his first official game with the Los Angeles Lakers. During the Lakers season opener, Westbrook notched 8 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and had 4 turnovers. Westbrook ended the game with a disappointing +/- score of -23.
Westbrook’s poor run of form with the Lakers has continued through his stretch of preseason games. Russ was brought to Los Angeles in order to form a big three with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. With the Western Conference becoming tougher, the Lakers felt that they needed an additional superstar.
James and Davis had great individual performances. Both players had more than 30 points each. But Westbrook had a very poor showing. His style of play hasn’t clicked with the Lakers squad yet. And he is clearly showing his lack of chemistry with the rest of the squad.
One person who was not a fan of Russell Westbrook’s first official game as a Laker was Kendrick Perkins. ‘Big Perk’ took to Twitter and spoke about Westbrook’s performance, noting that he was a fan of Russ, but he was having a really bad performance going up against the Warriors.
I love Russ competitiveness but he’s TRIPPEN right now. God Bless America! Carry on…
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) October 20, 2021
“I love Russ competitiveness but he’s TRIPPEN right now. God Bless America! Carry on…”
The Lakers now will hope that Westbrook will continue to get better integrated into the team. Right now, Westbrook has to focus on steadily improving on his chemistry with the Lakers. LeBron James told Russ to put the performance behind him and watch a movie with his family to distract himself.
Perhaps Westbrook needs a little more time to get used to the Lakers’ offense. He struggled last season with the Washington Wizards but eventually got back to putting up numbers that we know him to do. So maybe Westbrook needs a little more time to overcome the adjustment period to help the Lakers win a championship.
