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The Los Angeles Lakers will wrap up one of the most disappointing seasons in franchise history Sunday against the Denver Nuggets, and now we’re getting some insight into why things went so poorly, particularly with Russell Westbrook.
The star point guard had one of the worst seasons of his career in L.A. after coming over in a trade from the Washington Wizards. He struggled to adapt in Frank Vogel’s system, and his issues reportedly began before the season started.
A Lakers staff member told Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times that Westbrook refused to share the ball with his teammates and wanted the ball in his hands at all times, which irritated Vogel, who Westbrook reportedly did not respect.
“Russ [Westbrook) never respected Frank [Vogel] from Day 1,” the staff member told Woike. “The moment Frank said anybody who gets the rebound can bring it up the court, which is just how the NBA is played these days, Russ was like, ‘Naw, I’m the point guard. Give the ball to me. Everybody run.’ Frank was like, ‘No, we have Talen [Horton-Tucker)] We have Austin [Reaves]. We have Malik. We have LeBron. We have AD. They can all bring the ball up.’ He was like, ‘Nope, I’m the point guard. Give me that s—. Everybody get out the way.’
“From that point on, in training camp, it was a wrap, ’cause now Russ is a fish out of water. He doesn’t know what to do. That’s how that started.”
Westbrook got his fair share of touches this season, and even as he continued to struggle, his teammates would still give him the ball. The 33-year-old is averaging 18.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists while shooting 44.4 percent from the floor and 29.8 percent from deep in 78 games. He hadn’t averaged under 20 points per game since his second season in the NBA in 2009-10.
Westbrook’s teammates even tried to give him some motivation to elevate his game. According to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, his teammates were trying to find a way to “feed the beast” and would tell him things like “the coaches hate you” and “the front office is trying to get rid of you.”
That tactic didn’t work out, and now it appears the Lakers are trying to part ways with Westbrook this offseason. And while it could be difficult given his $47 million salary in 2022-23, the Charlotte Hornets have been named as a team to watch for the veteran guard, according to NBA insider Marc Stein.
