Getty Russell Westbrook #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts during a game against the Atlanta Hawks.
Los Angeles Lakers point guard Russell Westbrook is one of the best players in NBA history. He has career averages of 22.9 points, 7.4 rebounds and 8.5 assists and is the league’s all-time leader in triple-doubles.
However, Westbrook’s first season with the Lakers has been one to forget thus far. Although the nine-time All-Star is putting up solid per-game averages of 18.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.6 assists, he leads the NBA in turnovers, is shooting a woeful 29.8% from beyond the arc and has a plus-minus of -123.
Westbrook has appeared in four games for the Lakers in February. He’s putting up 10.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game while shooting 27.5% from the field, 15.4% from 3-point range and 55.0% from the free-throw line. The future Hall of Famer has been so bad lately that his longtime rival poked fun at him on Twitter.
Patrick Beverley Trolls Westbrook
Westbrook and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Patrick Beverley aren’t friends. Their rivalry started in 2013 when Beverley was playing for the Houston Rockets. The Chicago native went for a steal and took out Westbrook’s knee, which led to a meniscus tear.
Even since then, Westbrook and Beverley have become enemies. They have gotten into several scuffles and taken shots at each other via the media, with the most famous quote coming from Westbrook on November 13, 2019.
“Pat Bev trick y’all, man, like he playing defense,” Westbrook said. “He don’t guard nobody, man. He just running around, doing nothing.”
Westbrook, who was on the Rockets in 2019-20, scored 17 points while shooting 6-of-20 from the field against Beverley and the Los Angeles Clippers on November 13, 2019. The one-time MVP didn’t play well, but his teammate — James Harden — did. The Beard went off for 47 points and scored most of his buckets on Beverley.
Beverley never fired back at Westbrook’s comments, until now. The UCLA product has been struggling all season for the Lakers and Beverley demolished him on social media.
“I remember when somebody said all I do is run around and I trick y’all,” Beverley wrote on Twitter. “Well my boy is The Real Magician this year.”
This was a brutal roast by Beverley, whose Timberwolves are ahead of the Lakers in the Western Conference standings. Los Angeles’ front office thought adding Westbrook next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis would result in a championship. However, Russ has been so putrid that he was almost traded five months after the Lakers acquired him from the Washington Wizards.
Lakers Never Gained Traction on Westbrook Trade
According to Bill Oram of The Athletic, some members of the Lakers’ coaching staff wanted Westbrook traded at the trade deadline. However, the franchise never gained traction on a Westbrook trade since the guard is making $44 million this season and has a player option worth $47 million for 2022-21.
Lakers head coach Frank Vogel has benched Westbrook twice this season. From the outside looking in, it doesn’t appear the player and coach have a good relationship. However, the two will have to remain professional for the rest of the year since the Lakers didn’t trade Westbrook and likely won’t fire Vogel.
Beverley is the talk of NBA Twitter right now since he savagely roasted Westbrook. It will be fascinating to watch how the two feisty competitors play on March 16 when the Timberwolves host the Lakers.