Getty Russell Westbrook #0 of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Russell Westbrook’s first season with the Los Angeles Lakers hasn’t gone well. Not only does he lead the NBA in turnovers, but Westbrook has also been booed at home games by Lakers fans.
During the Lakers’ March 7th loss to the San Antonio Spurs, there was a possession where Westbrook looked completely disengaged on the defensive end. The All-Star guard may have had a lot of things on his mind since his wife, Nina, received death wishes on social media and fans have been calling him “Russell Westbrick.”
Kendrick Perkins, who played with Westbrook on the Oklahoma City Thunder and currently works for ESPN, didn’t like Westbrook’s body language against the Spurs, so much so that he believes it’s time for the Lakers and their starting point guard to part ways before the regular season ends.
“I think it’s almost best for Russ just not to play the rest of this season,” Perkins said on ESPN’s NBA Today. “Because he’s not there. When you hear a guy that you grew up watching in Magic Johnson criticize you the way Magic did the other night and saying how that if this don’t happen, it would be the worst trade and Russell Westbrook hasn’t done this, that hurts a little differently.”
The Lakers dropped to 28-36 on the season after losing to the Spurs. They have 18 games left in the regular season and Perkins thinks Westbrook will be “broken” for those games.
Perkins: Westbrook Is ‘Broken’
Westbrook is averaging 18.1 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.2 assists for the Lakers. Those are solid numbers on paper. The issue is that the UCLA product is shooting only 43.3% from the field, 28.2% from beyond the arc and 66.5% from the free-throw line.
Perkins feels bad that Westbrook’s wife has received death threats and Westbrook’s kids don’t come to Crypto.com Arena. The one-time champion sees a “broken” player on the Lakers who has lost confidence and joy.
“Russell Westbrook is broken,” Perkins said on NBA Today. “And I’m not talking about his jump shot. Yes, we can go down the line and say how he should play better, but I can see it. I can see it in his body language, and now, we finally are realizing that Russell Westbrook is human.”
The Lakers are in ninth place in the Western Conference. The Nos. 7-10 seeds participate in the play-in tournament. It looks like the purple and gold will be in the play-in tournament for the second year in a row, although they could fall out of the ninth or 10th spot with the way they are playing.
The odds of the Lakers listening to Perkins and shutting Westbrook down are next to none. However, don’t be surprised if Westbrook is on a new team next season.
Westbrook, Lakers Have Mutual Interest in Parting Ways This Summer
According to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, Westbrook and the Lakers have mutual interest in parting ways in the offseason. The Lakers’ most realistic option may ultimately be stretching Westbrook’s $47 million player option for 2022-23.
“You’ll at least be able to patch something together,” an NBA cap analyst told Fischer. “It might actually be their best move and puts some pieces around LeBron (James).”
If Westbrook is on a new team next season, he will have played for five teams in five years.