The Los Angeles Lakers witnessed one of the biggest “super team” failures in NBA history after adding Russell Westbrook to the team. Hopes of Westbrook forming chemistry with LeBron James and Anthony Davis failed instantly. Westbrook was blamed by many Lakers fans and personnel for his playing style clashing with James especially. Former Lakers teammate Troy Brown shared some inside details about the drama between the two.
Brown revealed that LeBron and Westbrook clashed over one specific topic:
“Russ wanted us to have fun. Like, that’s the part about it where it’s like, love Russ. Like, he cares about people as people first. And I think that’s the part where sometimes the business side of it can blind that. And so he was just like, you can feel the tension in the room. You could cut a knife with it. It was bad.
And so I think Russ wanted us to feel that relief and just enjoy the game and stop putting so much pressure on ourselves. And so that’s where the clip kind of came from. Because Bron, ‘We need to take this momentum, and we need to win more games. Let’s do exactly.’ And he’s being intense about it. And Russ is like, ‘No, we need to have more fun.’ But bro, it was crazy. We all just started looking at each other in there.”
Both players had different mentalities to address the team struggling and dealing with a lot of media pressure. The Lakers were just a few seasons removed from the 2020 NBA Championship win over the Miami Heat. Westbrook trying to ease up the locker room clashed with LeBron’s leadership style.
LeBron James Instantly Regretted Russell Westbrook
The influence of James plays a major role in the decisions for any team he plays for. Lakers’ management trusted LeBron after the 2020 NBA Title. The desire to add another superstar saw them trading for Westbrook from the Washington Wizards.
Westbrook was coming off another triple double season and felt like a worthwhile gamble to go after another ring. The offense unfortunately didn’t work effectively with Westbrook making decisions while James and Davis were on the floor.
LeBron received blame in the media for the Lakers going after Westbrook and losing other respected talents. Losing players like Dennis Schroder and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope ended up being a huge problem for the depth.
Lakers Ruined Russell Westbrook’s Career
The other side of the argument features the Lakers’ role in Westbrook’s career falling apart. Media blame for the team’s failure saw Westbrook no longer respected after his previous few seasons saw him in All-NBA contention.
The next stop for Westbrook saw him helping the Los Angeles Clippers, but he was forced to the bench. Westbrook dropped from a superstar averaging triple doubles to becoming a bench player fighting for minutes after his Lakers tenure.
Future stints with the Denver Nuggets and Sacramento Kings showed Westbrook still having talent and athleticism. Unfortunately, the bench role remained and played a role in his sudden retirement. Westbrook clashing with LeBron in Los Angeles started the negative downturn.
Lakers Teammate Reveals LeBron Vs Russell Westbrook Issues