It would be fair to say that Russell Westbrook doesn’t take criticism all that well, his recent spat with Magic Johnson being evidence of that, and frankly, since joining the Los Angeles Lakers over the offseason, the 33-year-old has hardly covered himself in glory, but his recent comments and reaction to poor form will have pleased many.
The Lakers brought in a slew of new additions to aid their push towards an NBA title, with general manager Rob Pelinka doing great things after the close of last season, but the team hasn’t gelled, and Frank Vogel’s side now sit down in the fourth spot in the Pacific Division and their 24-27 record could well lead to the team not even making it to the ‘play-in’ tournament.
At the beginning of the season, the Lakers were second favorites, behind the Brooklyn Nets, but if you look at any odds comparison sport prediction site, you’ll note that they are now well down the pecking order. Vogel’s side is now placed at around (+1900), and unless they address their yo-yo form any time soon, it may be too late to reverse things.
Westbrook has responded to a run of three straight defeats on the road, against the Philadelphia 76ers, the Charlotte Hornets, and the Atlanta Hawks, by issuing a battle cry, in the hopes it might push his team back on track, stating;
“Never give up or give in. It’s not something, in my opinion, should seep into anybody’s mind,”
The nine-time NBA All-Star pick is, of course, right to make such statements, but he’ll have to lead by example; after all, that’s why he was brought into the Lakers organization to help push LeBron James and co. back to where they should be.
In these latest defeats, Westbrook has been without key teammates LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and that puts more responsibility on his very capable shoulders and how he handles that additional pressure is key to whether the Lakers can get anywhere near where they need to be if they want to not only make it to the postseason but to also go deep into the playoff picture.
On the subject of building more of team camaraderie, especially without Davis and James, Westbrook has spoken of the importance of team huddles;
“It’s part of playing the game, going through a tough stretch with injuries and different things of that nature. You don’t want to separate. You want to try to find ways to really bring the team together. That’s all I was trying to do during the timeouts.”
Westbrook banked 35 points in their 114-117 loss to Charlotte, and that represented the first time he top-scored for the Lakers in a match since late November and shows that he can step-up if needed, and Vogel will need more of that to come, especially if he’s without LeBron James or Anthony Davis for a more prolonged period.
The season is now heading into the latter stages, and the Lakers need to go on a strong run to get back on track. February sees them play six out of nine matches on their home court, and a run of wins at the Crypto.com Arena would stand them in good stead.
