The Los Angeles Lakers’ decision to retain Russell Westbrook after the trade deadline has caused a few raised eyebrows from fans who have had to endure the point guard’s terrible season. It wasn’t supposed to be this way, while some critics can genuinely claim to have foreseen this outcome due to Westbrook’s individualistic style of play, most fans believed that adding the nine-time All-Star to a roster that already featured Anthony Davis, Carmelo Anthony and Lebron James was going to lead to another NBA championship. As a California native, Westbrooks’s return was supposed to be a fairy-tale homecoming. Westbrook has earned the name “Westbrick” due to his poor shooting, which has contributed to the Lakers struggling to make the playoffs, with NBA betting odds provided by OddsChecker rating them as outsiders. So, how did we get here? And, what’s next for Westbrook?
Westbrook’s career so far
Russell Westbrook entered the league in 2008 after starring at UCLA for two years. He was a first-round, 4th pick selected by the Seattle SuperSonics, which later became Oklahoma City Thunder after relocating to the 405 shortly after he joined. In 11 years at the Thunder he earned his place in the hearts of fans across the league with some heroic performances. Westbrook spent 8 of those years alongside Kevin Durant, a double team that struck fear into the rest of the league, which led to comparisons with Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, Lebron James and Dwayne Wade, and Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen.
Any doubts over Westbrook’s ability to lead a team were quickly dispelled with his performances going up another level after Durant’s departure for Golden State. In his first season at OKC without Durant, Westbrook recorded his first triple-double season, leading to him being named league MVP in 2017. He went on to average a triple-double in the two following seasons, although the team struggled in the playoffs in all three seasons, which ultimately led to his departure.
He moved to Houston Rockets in 2019, reuniting with James Harden, but Westbrook struggled to settle amid the disrupted season, which was suspended, before being completed in the bubble at Disney World in Florida. He moved to the Washington Wizards the following year and recorded his fourth triple-double season, and broke Wilt Chamberlain’s long-standing record, before moving to the Lakers.
Lakers’ struggles
Since moving to Los Angeles, Westbrook has struggled with both form and injuries, which has led to criticism from both fans and pundits. His wife has even jumped to his defense online, criticizing Skip Bayless on Twitter for his constant mocking of Westbrook. While the name-calling and harassment are certainly overboard, Westbrook has been extremely disappointing for the Lakers. One of the low points came on Christmas day 2021 when he went 4-for-20 in field goal attempts against the Nets, a performance that would’ve been particularly embarrassing as it came against his former teammate Kevin Durant.
He received further criticism in January 2022 for his three-point shooting percentage of 30. While this is poor by his usual standards, it isn’t too far below the league average, which sums up his time at the Lakers; he has not performed at his usual level, but also hasn’t been as bad as critics are making out.
Possible moves
The fact Westbrook remained a Laker after the February 10th trade deadline surprised many, but he is certain to be traded in the postseason. He has been linked with a move to Houston Rockets in a trade that would see John Wall move in the opposite direction, however Lakers fans have voiced their concern at the prospect of signing an injury-prone player.
He has also been linked with the Knicks, who are arguably in need of a marquee player like Westbrook, with fans citing his potential compatibility with the likes of Julius Randle and RJ Barrett as a good reason to make the trade. Westbrook’s Lakers struggles have been put down to the fact that he is a player who likes to have a lot of the ball, which is why he struggles to play with someone like Lebron James. Fans are hopeful that he’d work well with the two Knicks stars, who both work well off the ball.
