A lot has been said about the Russell Westbrook situation with the Los Angeles Lakers, particularly with the recent turn of events that saw Russ being benched late in the game against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night. Anthony Morrow, an ex-teammate of Westbrook with the Oklahoma City Thunder, has now chimed in on the situation and he's brought up an excellent point about LeBron James being on the center of this whole mess.
According to Morrow, he firmly believes that LeBron is in the best position to fix this entire situation for the Lakers:
“I didn't really necessarily like the move in the beginning of it but my whole entire mentality with it was Bron has to somehow figure out how to make Russ a Dwyane Wade from the Miami days,” Morrow said on SiriusXM NBA Radio. “He gotta put him in that position. And I ain’t know how it’s going to work, but that’s the only way that it’s gonna to work because I know what kind of player Russ is. I know his pedigree. He a dog. He a killer. He go hard. Like he's not gonna stop. He can't not be who he is on the court.”
Fair point from Morrow here. Westbrook is no spring chicken and he has a very particular style of play that as it turns out, isn't exactly the perfect fit for the current makeup of this Lakers lineup. Morrow points out that Russ won't be able to change his game, and LeBron and the Lakers knew this when they traded for him last summer. As such, the impetus would have to be on James himself to figure out how to make the most out of this current situation.
“It hasn't worked the way they wanted it to work but I think the team is structured differently. … LeBron is gonna be LeBron with any team in the world. Some of those guys they have to accept roles or change their game, and Russ is not one of those who'll be able to change his game especially at this point in his career.”
"They still got some time to figure it out and get it done"
Russell Westbrook’s former teammate, @MrAnthonyMorrow, tells @talkhoops and @ROSGO21 why he isn’t giving up on Russell fitting in with the Lakers #LakeShow pic.twitter.com/GpiTnRc3BA
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) January 21, 2022
There has already been a lot of talk about the Lakers potentially trading away Westbrook prior to the deadline. While this still remains a distinct possibility, the truth is that Russ' gargantuan deal virtually makes him untradeable. According to reports, no team in the league has shown interest in taking on the former league MVP's contract which will see him earn over $91 million through next season. In this respect, it seems that LeBron and the Lakers really have no other choice but to work things out.
LA is in action on Friday night as they take on the Orlando Magic. This will be a very important game for them not only because they are in dire need of a win, but also because it will be an indication of how this team reacts in the face of adversity. All eyes will also be on Russ and head coach Frank Vogel, particularly in the dying moments of this contest. If Westbrook is benched late in the game yet again then this could be a trend that we should expect to occur on a regular basis.
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