If you have been following the NBA over the last few months, one of the biggest topics has been the future of Russell Westbrook with the Los Angeles Lakers. Last season, Russ failed to impress the franchise with his performances. If anything, he was blamed for most of the failures of the Lakers last season.
As a result, the Lakers have been quite open about trading Westbrook this offseason. But they haven’t found a single team that has been interested in trading for the former MVP.
If there is one person who has constantly been in Russ’ corner, it has been the new Lakers head coach Darvin Ham. Ever since he joined the Lakers, he has made it extremely clear that he wants to include Westbrook in his plans.
Darvin Ham Once Again Praises Russell Westbrook
With the training camp right around the corner, Ham recently spoke about many things in an interview. One of them was about including Russ in the team amidst rumors of him getting traded.
Darvin Ham on his buy-in from Russell Westbrook: “Everything has been clear and up front between him and I. He’s been a pleasure. … He’s been that since Day 1. … The communication has been great both ways. … I can wait to succeed with him.”
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) September 6, 2022
Everything has been clear and up front between him and I. He’s been a pleasure. … He’s been that since Day 1. … The communication has been great both ways. … I can wait to succeed with him.
It finally seems like things are improving for Westbrook. He will most likely be starting the season as the number one choice point guard for the Lakers. Moreover, if Ham continues to show this trust in Westbrook, it will help him in getting his confidence back.
And we all know that a confident Westbrook is a very dangerous player. If Anthony Davis can stay healthy throughout the season as well, the Lakers might actually make a great comeback next season. But can they compete for the NBA Championship? We cannot answer that right now.
