Russell Westbrook has been one of the most scrutinized players in the NBA this season. Westbrook has struggled to fit in with the Los Angeles Lakers this season and hasn’t performed up to the level that was expected of him. The Lakers have not gotten the Russell Westbrook that they wanted when they first traded for him.
Recently, Westbrook’s performances have been highlighted thanks to that of his teammates. During the Los Angeles Lakers’ last game against the New York Knicks, Russell Westbrook had a poor shooting night and was benched by Frank Vogel. What made this worse is that the Lakers’ other superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis put up really strong numbers.
Frank Vogel spoke about benching Russell Westbrook, saying that he hoped it forces him to improve, thus sending a message to the former MVP. After the game, Westbrook was grilled by reporters about his poor shooting night. Russ was frustrated and called out the media over their double standard when it comes to him (3:26 mark).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mziKwT4yek
“When I play bad you guys ask me a sh*t ton of questions, and then when I shoot the ball really well, I don’t really hard too many of those questions.”
Westbrook also spoke during the press conference about being benched in the closing stages of the game, how he understands why Vogel did it and why it needed to happen. While Russ was not thrilled about being benched, he understood that it was a decision that the coach felt was the right decision.
Westbrook has been criticized a lot recently. Recently, Lakers’ superfan Shannon Sharpe spoke about how the Lakers will not win a championship with Russell Westbrook because he is not a good point guard. Westbrook will be hoping to prove all the critics wrong and help the Lakers win an NBA championship.
