Russell Westbrook is a player that is often criticized by fans and analysts for his play style, and the way that he approaches the game. That has happened a lot throughout his career, but the criticism was particularly loud during his last season with the Lakers.
Most recently, Russell Westbrook was criticized by a number of analysts after he was not part of a recent huddle with the Los Angeles Lakers. In particular, Shannon Sharpe slammed him for doing so, claiming that the Los Angeles Lakers are done with Russell Westbrook.
“I think I speak for a lot of Laker Nation fans. They ready to be done with Russ. Russ doesn’t wanna be a Laker, and the Lakers doesn’t want him. They done with Russ. I think Russ is done with them also.”
“I’ve never seen somebody wave off a huddle. I ain’t got no scales. I just know that when he gets the ball, I get anxious, I wanna turn the TV off cos I know something good is not about to happen. It’s frustrating. They made a mistake. The Lakers made a mistake, Russ made a mistake in wanting to come to the Lakers. This is not gonna work.”
Kevin Durant has recently defended Russell Westbrook amidst recent criticism, claiming that people are making him “the butt” of their jokes, and adding that the criticism is “starting to turn into something else”.
.@KDTrey5 on the criticism Russell Westbrook has been receiving:
"It's like now you're making him the butt of your jokes. … The dialog around our game is just so toxic at this point. I get criticism [on the court], but it's starting to turn into something else right now." pic.twitter.com/jRd8bs5eFS
— Boardroom (@boardroom) October 18, 2022
I mean, Russell always did that. It feels like he was getting his mind ready… that’s his own routine before the game. But if you play in LA, you’re playing for the biggest city in sports, and LeBron James… everything you do is going to be magnified… The Lakers got a big market scope on them, so you gotta be on point every time. Russell miss a layup, it’s going to be blown out of proportion… I understand there’s certain points where you don’t play well, and you are open to criticism when you don’t play well.
“It’s like now you’re making him the butt of your jokes… It’s starting to reach a level of shit I don’t understand. Hopefully, he just keeps hooping… The dialog around our game is just so toxic at this point. I get criticism [on the court], but it’s starting to turn into something else right now.”
There is no doubt that the criticism has sometimes gone overboard when it comes to Russell Westbrook. Hopefully, we see him play well for the Los Angeles Lakers this season and shut all the haters up.
Russell Westbrook Could Thrive As A Sixth Man
There has been a lot of discussion about Darvin Ham’s choice to deploy Russell Westbrook as a sixth man for the Lakers. The move could definitely become a positive for both the Los Angeles Lakers and Russell Westbrook, as Westbrook being the primary ball handler off the bench could put him in a comfort zone and allow him to be freer to play his style offensively.
As of right now, though, we’ll have to wait to see how Russell Westbrook coming off the bench works in a real game. He is definitely still good enough to be a starting point guard too, and perhaps we’ll see the Los Angeles Lakers adjust his role depending on the matchup they face.
