The Los Angeles Lakers came into this NBA season with title aspirations, but ultimately failed to make the playoffs altogether.
Offseason acquisition Russell Westbrook was seen by many as the primary reason for L.A.’s woes. His poor fit within the existing scheme and refusal to listen to recently-fired head coach Frank Vogel proved to be a recipe for disaster.
On Tuesday, Westbrook spoke to the media about a myriad of topics.
One in particular that got a lot of attention after the fact? How he felt LeBron James and Anthony Davis lied regarding him earlier this year.
When Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times mentioned that James and Davis said on multiple occasions throughout the season, “Let Russ be Russ,” Westbrook immediately fired back: “Yeah, but that wasn’t true. Let’s be honest.”
Westbrook also took aim at Vogel, suggesting he was never given a fair shake by the Lakers coach.
“I’m not sure what his issue was with me, or why,” Westbrook noted. “I can’t really give you an answer on why we never really connected.”
All in all, Westbrook really seemed to have walked away from this season feeling slighted.
“When I first got here, I just felt that I never was given a fair chance to be who I needed to be to better help this team,” Westbrook he said.
It will be interesting to see where things go from here. Despite his horrendous inaugural campaign with the Lakers, Westbrook appears to have four legit trade suitors out there for him.
At least Dak Prescott is winning big off the field. https://t.co/2LIlZ6hH6w
— Game 7 (@game7__) April 11, 2022
If one of those squads actually takes him, a quick rebuild for the Lakers doesn’t seem out of the question.
But if Westbrook remains in purple and gold next season, there’s no reason to assume 2022-23 will go any differently than 2021-22 did.
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Charles Kruger has been credentialed to cover two Super Bowls, four NBA Finals, and one World Series. A 20-year veteran in the sports world, he has sources spanning the NBA, MLB, NFL, UFC and NASCAR. Currently residing in Los Angeles, Calif., he is Game 7’s go-to source for rumors surrounding the Lakers, Clippers and Dodgers.
