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A two-time All-Star and $18 million guard had a lot to say about Los Angeles Lakers point guard Russell Westbrook on August 9.
Miami Heat shooting guard Victor Oladipo spoke to former NBA star Vince Carter on the “VC Show” and the Indiana product said Westbrook is preparing for a revenge tour in 2022-23. Oladipo and Westbrook have been training together in Los Angeles and both guards are eager for next season to start.
“Right now, we on the same wavelength,” Oladipo said. “And when I say that, you said it best. You have to sit down and talk to him to understand where he’s at, but he’s there.”
Westbrook and Oladipo were teammates for one season on the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2016-17, the year Westbrook won his MVP. The scoring guards developed a strong bond and have remained friends despite being on separate teams since the start of the 2017-18 season.
Westbrook Knows Lakers Are Trying to Trade Him
Westbrook knows the Lakers, who missed the playoffs last season, are trying to trade him. Per a July 29 report from Marc Stein of Substack, LeBron James wants the Lakers to trade for Brooklyn Nets All-Star Kyrie Irving. Stein also reported that Westbrook knows of James’ appetite to play with Irving, whose future with the Nets is up in the air since two-time Finals MVP Kevin Durant has requested a trade.
“As it stands, barring a trade to ship out Westbrook suddenly coalescing after weeks of fruitless talks, (Darvin) Ham is going to have to coach Westbrook, which is bound to be challenging in the extreme given that Westbrook is well aware that the Lakers have been trying hard to move him,” Stein reported. “And that James badly wants Irving to take his place.”
On August 6, a Twitter account called “Russell Westbrook Stan” tweeted out Westbrook’s stats over the final 10 games of last season with the caption, “Brodie was getting into a rhythm dealing with all the injuries and lineup changes while not being used right and they want to trade him?”
Westbrook, 33, liked the tweet and NBA Twitter saw it.
Westbrook could be using the trade rumors as fuel during his offseason workouts. The NBA’s all-time leader in triple-doubles started 78 games for the Lakers last season and put up solid per-game numbers of 18.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists.
However, the Lakers went 31-47 in Westbrook’s 78 appearances and Westbrook was second in the NBA in turnovers and 42nd in true shooting percentage.
Lakers Hopeful Westbrook Will Improve His 3-Point Shooting from Corners
If the Lakers are unable to trade Westbrook, they are reportedly hopeful the nine-time All-Star will improve his 3-point shooting from the corners next season, according to an August 9 report from Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. The corner 3-pointer is the shortest shot from beyond the arc.
Westbrook hit 43.8% of his 3-pointers from the corner last season. He shot 44.4% from the floor, 29.8% from beyond the arc and 66.7% from the free-throw line. The two-time scoring champion had the sixth-worst effective field goal percentage in the NBA, making him a poor fit next to James and Anthony Davis.
Speaking of James and Davis, Haynes reported on July 18 that Westbrook, James and Davis spoke on the phone, with each All-Star expressing their commitment to one another. James and Westbrook didn’t sit next to each other during the Lakers’ Summer League game on July 8 in Las Vegas.
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