"He may not be the best shooter, but I would take him on my team any night" - Stacey King goes to bat for Russell Westbrook
The Chicago Bulls are a deeply-flawed team that did not make any moves at the trade deadline to address any of their deficiencies. At 26-31, they still have a decent chance of slipping into the NBA Playoffs, but they must make a move or two through the buyout market. One prominent name that has popped up often is former league MVP Russell Westbrook, who has an outspoken supporter and advocate in former NBA champion and current Bulls commentator Stacey King.
"He may not be the best shooter, but I would take him on my team any night because this is one guy you don't ever have to worry about coming ready to play," King said on the Gimme The Hot Sauce podcast.
Fierce competitor
One of the many gripes fans have with the current Bulls squad is their seeming lack of urgency and energy, with coach Billy Donovan calling that out numerous times this season. With Westbrook, King said, they wouldn't have this issue as the 34-year-old comes ready to play—whether it's the start of the season or the end of it.
"This guy loves to compete. He loves to play. He's going to inspire other people to play hard," added King.
"Tremendously with effort and energy every night," King said. "One thing you can't say about Russell Westbrook is he doesn't play hard. You know this is a superstar player."
Not the scapegoat
King also blasted the narrative that Westbrook was to blame for the Los Angeles Lakers' troubles during his time there before he was recently traded to the Utah Jazz. Rather, King pointed the finger at the Lakers' current superstar, LeBron James, who reportedly took the lead in recruiting Westbrook to LA from the Washington Wizards.
"You knew what kind of player Russ is. The coaching staff knew what kind of player, the organization knew what kind of player he is. He's a ball-dominant guard. He's a guy that has to have the ball in his hands," shared King.
"He wants to get the ball, rebound the ball at the point guard position and push in transition. He will pass. That's the reason why he has triple-doubles. But you better run with him. LeBron doesn't want to run in transition. LeBron wants to walk the ball up, shoot a step back, 30-foot-three. That's what he wants to do."
King also put the Lakers' coaching staff on blast, saying they did not maximize Westbrook's talents.
"The coaching staff should be the blame, you know, for not knowing how to put Russell in situations where he could succeed. You're telling Russell now, okay, we want you to be as sit in the corner, stand there and shoot threes. That's not his game."
