Lakers: Russell Westbrook Gets Defensive Over His Performance
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After another disastrous loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Lakers postgame conference was bound to have some fireworks. The Lakers got outscored 35-24 in the fourth quarter and had a lot of complete defensive lapses in crunch time.
Westbrook's late performance was particularly an issue for one reporter, who asked Westbrook about it.
Russell Westbrook to a reporter asking about the final possessions: "You saw it. Don't ask me questions you know the answer to. You seen it. I lost the ball. I missed a three. There's nothing to it." pic.twitter.com/7aeYFlwxFH
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) November 5, 2021
"You saw it. Don't ask me questions you know the answer to. You seen it. I lost the ball. I missed a three. There's nothing to it."
Westbrook's postgame press conferences are already legendary, especially his honesty. Between telling a reporter he flat out didn't like him, to saying a reporter was 'trippin,' to randomly telling a reporter he uses dove soap...Westbrook's interviews are never boring.
I understand Westbrook's ire, but the thing is, that wasn't his only issue late in the game.
Ask yourself: what was Russ doing here? pic.twitter.com/OrPWl89E3X
— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) November 5, 2021
With 21 seconds in the game, completely abandoning your man on the basket side is a monstrous error. You can't double a player from over 7 feet away, especially completely abandoning your man basket-side. The Lakers have drastic defensive schemes to fix, but falling asleep on defense is an individual issue. Westbrook should have made a better choice.
Westbrook's ill-advised three point attempt has already been parsed by Coach Frank Vogel (who said he wanted a better shot than that) so it's hard to jump on that. Westbrook is a big-game performer, but passing on a three-pointer may have been the best choice, but in the long run the mental mistakes for the Lakers are going to count for bigger losses.