Russell Westbrook has missed 32 of his last 40 attempts from the field. He missed 14 of his 16 shot attempts in the Los Angeles Lakers 125-116 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday at the Golden 1 Center.

Afterward, Westbrook, LeBron James, and Frank Vogel had slightly differing views on the guard's ongoing cold streak.

“Just keep working,” LeBron said. “He’s getting some really good looks, just not going down for him. NBA players, Everyone gets frustrated when they go through a slump. That’s natural.”

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1TPm3OFftbac33PA5zzf8R?si=b7e0129496ec48ba

 

“We’re working with Russ,” a sullen and succinct Frank Vogel said. “He’s receiving our coaching. Just trying to put him in positions to succeed. He’s just in a slump right now. We just gotta stay with him and help him through it … I don’t think he’s lacking in confidence.”

Westbrook, while more accountable, open, and jovial than usual in his post-game remarks, didn't quite view his slump through the same lens.

“Honestly, the word ‘slump' is not something I lean on,” Russ said. “I stay locked into my craft, figure it out. I’m in the position of trying to figure out the best way to play at the moment, and that’s that. Nothing that hasn’t happened to me before … Best thing about the NBA: get a chance to go back to the drawing board and look at how you can be effective, at least from the scoring side of it, and make adjustments and figure out ways to just, make a f*cking shot. That’s it.”

The Kings in-arena DJ played Foreigner's “Cold As Ice” as Westbrook was introduced in the starting lineups and after every nearly ever miss. Westbrook is averaging 13.5 points on 32.8% shooting in January and is yet to make a triple in 2022.

On the plus side, he's limited his turnovers:

In general, Westbrook has seemed a bit lost while the Lakers pivot to small-ball.

“It's a part of the adjustment,” the Lakers star said about his recent struggles. “And obviously, I've gotta be able to make it, and figure it out. But nobody's gonna feel sorry for me or for us, to be able to do that. And me as a player, I gotta figure out how to do it the best way within the way that we're playing, within a system. And that's that. I got no excuses. For me, I don't point fingers. I just always look at myself and figure out ways to become better. But one thing I never do is panic. I never lack confidence in myself and what I'm capable of doing. But I am and will put more pressure on myself to be better, especially on the offensive end and making some shots as we move forward. So, that's something that I can move forward with and something that I can look myself in the mirror and make adjustments to be needed.”