The relationship between Russell Westbrook and the Los Angeles Lakers has seen better days.
L.A. acquired the former league MVP last summer in hopes of creating a three-headed monster that could compete with the likes of the Brooklyn Nets’ then-trio of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden.
When it was all said and done, much as became the case with Brooklyn’s group – the Lakers’ experiment failed.
Ever since, Los Angeles has been looking to unload Westbrook. And he isn’t particularly happy about that.
This week, Westbrook lashed out at the Lakers (again) in the form of a tweet:
wtf pic.twitter.com/O0Beu41e7S
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) August 15, 2022
Reactions to Westbrook’s pettiness and general delusional nature poured in immediately:
LMAOOOO this is crazy https://t.co/ShYNtDWUah
— SolarDrive (@Bherlock_Bomes) August 16, 2022
Another season down the drain https://t.co/pKKJRYdlOQ
— Ammoudi (@Ammoudii) August 16, 2022
@KoriJNBA yo he wildin https://t.co/1xFWCHCyxP
— cryptoafrican.eth (@MikeInGAME6) August 15, 2022
It appears to be real checking his shit..interesting lol. Well, not too surprising, because he threw bron,AD, coach V & the organizers under the buss in his exit interview & to be fair I do agree with what he said but I disagree with him airing it publicly. However, lot of cats/ https://t.co/7x2kOtT2mh
— The Beautiful Struggle (@TheLakeShow4L) August 15, 2022
Next szn could be the most toxic szn we’ve seen in years. https://t.co/6ff1l3GmKl
— JohnnyBoy (@LiveFrmCarolina) August 15, 2022
Man get this mf off my team https://t.co/jRohSKLXAq pic.twitter.com/Ymg9KquLsb
— 𝕝𝕒𝕜𝕖𝕣𝕤 𝕕𝕚𝕤𝕔𝕠𝕦𝕣𝕤𝕖 𝕒𝕔𝕔𝕥 ᐂ (@Reese_eeee) August 15, 2022
The Lakers have caught a decent amount of flack in recent days for their handling of Westbrook. Regardless of who is held responsible for this poisonous relationship, though – there is no denying that it’s a mess.
L.A. currently has a Plan A trade, a Plan B trade and a Plan C trade in the works. In all three scenarios, Westbrook is a goner.
Now that’s how you prepare for a Super Bowl season. https://t.co/QI03wP0rZv
— Game 7 (@game7__) August 17, 2022
The question now is simply where he will go.
Will the Lakers be able to regain some semblance of respectability in 2022-23?
Time will tell.
Related: 3 NBA Teams Emerge As Donovan Mitchell Trade Frontrunners
Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.
