Russell Westbrook has been criticized a lot over the course of this season. Westbrook has been underperforming to a major level over the last few months, and fans have been vocal about the fact that he isn’t playing the way he should. But Westbrook feels he can still contribute, despite the Lakers not having faith in him to do so.
Last night, Westbrook was benched by Frank Vogel in the closing moments of the game, as the Lakers looked to come back and try and defeat the Milwaukee Bucks. This was the second game in a row that Westbrook was benched in crunch time, as he was left out of the team during overtime in the game against the New York Knicks.
After the game, Westbrook explained the interaction he had with LeBron James and Anthony Davis that was caught on camera. He told reporters during the post-game press conference what he said. He told LeBron and AD that he wished he could help them but didn’t get the chance to.
https://twitter.com/hmfaigen/status/1491291525308817410
“I told them I wished I could help them. But I wasn’t in the game to help them out… But that’s not my call.”
Westbrook clearly feels he can contribute more. And the loss was very demoralizing for the Lakers. In the closing stages, Westbrook was seen consoling LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the bench, a moment fans roasted him for, given how poor he played compared to the two superstars.
Westbrook’s comments are somewhat strange, given how he has been performing. Westbrook was underwhelming against the Bucks, as he has been over the last few weeks. But he seems to think that he can still help the Lakers, as he slammed Vogel’s decision to bench him after the game. Clearly, Russ thinks he can help turn this situation around.
