For the second day in a row, Los Angeles Lakers head coach Frank Vogel was asked if he has considered bringing Russell Westbrook off the bench. He is yet to firmly say “no.”

Following the Lakers' lopsided loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday, a reporter asked Vogel the question that many Lakers fans have wondered aloud for months: Is it time to move the future Hall of Famer, earning a team-high $44 million, out of the starting lineup?

“We’ve talked about everything, yes,” Vogel stated. “We’ve talked about everything.”

On Friday, as Vogel took questions after Lakers practice, he was, predictably, asked again about Westbrook's role going forward. While he didn't want to elaborate on the topic and admitted it wasn't likely to happen, he didn't rule it out.

“I'm not really gonna get into that,” Vogel said. “We've had discussions, just like the front office has thousands of trade discussions every trade deadline. Most of them don't come to fruition and that's where we're at with Russ. Having said (that), if that's the path that's a better option, we have talked about that. We've talked about everything we can do with our team. OK? We're not there, so I have nothing to add to that.”

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Westbrook is averaging 14 points, 5.1 rebounds and 6.7 assists in 32.1 minutes over his past 10 games. Even for him, his .363/.133/.652 shooting splits during that span is shockingly dreadful. He was embarrassed by Reggie Jackson (36 points) throughout the Clippers matchup. The Lakers have are 1-9 in their past 10.

Russ has started every game he's played in the NBA since 2009. Considering how he reacted to being benched multiple times in crunch-time earlier this season, it's fair to assume that he might not respond well to a demotion (who does?) Depending on how these next few games go for the reeling Lakers — a treacherous stretch of schedule — the coaching staff and upper management will have to decide whether any potential headaches that come with benching Russ are worth the upside for a team whose ceiling might be a first-round exit, at best. The Lakers-Westbrook partnership is likely to end this summer, anyway.