Getty Clippers guard Russell Westbrook
After the Los Angeles Clippers got eliminated by the Phoenix Suns on April 25, Russell Westbrook took some shots at the Los Angeles Lakers.
Westbrook said he got into a better place after being traded by the Lakers.
I asked Russell Westbrook when he felt the weight lift off his shoulders and the peace of mind playing basketball kick in.
“Once I got traded. Immediately, to be honest. From that moment, honestly, mentally, I was in a better place.”
Russell Westbrook: “I’m grateful for the people that supported me… And also grateful for the people that didn’t support me.”
Westbrook was booed by Lakers fans last season and a few times this season. The future Hall of Famer averaged 17.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 7.2 assists in 130 games with the purple and gold before getting traded to the Utah Jazz. The Lakers went just 56-74 with Westbrook in the lineup. The All-Star guard wasn’t a good fit next to Anthony Davis and LeBron James since he’s not a reliable shooter, as Westbrook shot only 29.7% from beyond the arc as a member of the Lakers.
The Clippers lost to the Suns in five games. Westbrook averaged 23.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 4.0 turnovers in the series. The NBA’s all-time leader in triple-doubles becomes an unrestricted free agent this summer.
The Russell Westbrook Situation Became ‘Toxic’ for the Lakers
The Lakers made the right move by trading Westbrook, who got into an argument with head coach Darvin Ham in his final game with the team. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported in February that Westbrook and Ham had a “heated verbal exchange” in the locker room during halftime of the Lakers-Oklahoma City Thunder game on February 7. That’s the night James became the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
Jovan Buha and Sam Amick of The Athletic reported in February that the Westbrook situation became “toxic” for the Lakers, who went 18-9 after the trade deadline. That was the best record in the Western Conference.
“But when Ham turned his attention to Westbrook and his specific individual struggles, sources say the future Hall of Famer appeared to take it personally. As had been the case so many times before, when the coaching staff struggled with Westbrook’s unwillingness to be held accountable for his play, Westbrook wasn’t hearing it. Ham, sources say, was upset at a number of on-court developments from the first half,” Buha and Amick wrote. “But the final straw, it seems, was Westbrook’s choice to walk off the court so slowly after he was replaced late in the second quarter. For both parties, the topic of great disagreement centered on respect — or lack thereof. In the end, with the tension in the room adding to the toxicity of their environment yet again, they agreed to disagree.”
The New Point Guard of the Lakers Helped the Team Win Game 4 vs. the Grizzlies
The new point guard of the Lakers, D’Angelo Russell, helped the team win Game 4 against the Memphis Grizzlies on April 24. Russell scored 17 points while shooting 7-of-15 from the floor and 3-of-8 from 3-point land. The Ohio State product scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half.
The Lakers were down 97-90 with five minutes left in regulation before Russell went on a personal 9-0 run with three 3-pointers. After the game, James praised Russell.
“Without D’Lo and that fourth quarter, when the game was kind of stalling out and we couldn’t get a good shot, we couldn’t get a good look, D’Lo hit back-to-back 3s and gave us an opportunity to even put ourself in a position to go to overtime,” James told Chris Haynes of TNT. “So that was huge.”