Overall, Russell Westbrook played well in his debut as the Los Angeles Lakers sixth man on Friday. And while his role may have been different, the team's result was more of the same: another loss, this one a 111-102 defeat to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Russell Westbrook has played 82 total games for the Lakers. The team has won 30 of those. For all of his personal struggles, their woeful record is certainly not all on him, as recently evidenced by their past two outings. On Wednesday, with Westbrook sitting out with a sore hamstring, the Lakers lost by 11 to the Denver Nuggets.

At the Target Center, without Anthony Davis, Los Angeles was outclassed by the more-talented Wolves, despite an impactful showing from Westbrook — save for some missed shots and turnovers.

 

“From Day 1, like I mentioned, I've said (I'm a) guy who's willing to do whatever for the team,” Russ said postgame. “I've sacrificed whatever it is that need to be sacrificed. Parts of the game that I've done for years to accommodate whatever it is that the coach needs me to do. And I'll continue doing that.”

He then cut off a question about if it's particularly frustrating when his so-called “sacrifices” fail to produce wins.

“Hell yea,” he answered with a smile. “Coming off last season. Sacrificing. OK. Sacrificing more, and you’re still losing. It’s difficult. Especially playing, and doing things I know I can be able to help out our guys. And I’ll continue to do whatever is asked of me. We’ll figure it out and get on the board.”

Westbrook said his mentality wasn't any different coming off the bench. “It's still basketball.” He finished with 18 points on 6-of-17 shooting, eight rebounds, three assists, five turnovers, one steal and one block in 33 minutes. After missing his first five field goal attempts, he hit four of his next five, and sparked a 7-0 run going into halftime.

LeBron James credited Westbrook for “catapulting” the shorthanded Lakers against the Timberwolves. Darvin Ham praised the guard for taking the Lakers “up a notch” when he entered the game. Ham indicated that Russ will remain in the reserve role going forward.

Russ spent much of last season — culminating in his explosive exit interview press conference — reiterating how much he was sacrificing for the team, though the results (besides a naturally lower usage rate playing next to LeBron) didn't back up those sentiments.

Friday's loss signaled an encouraging pivot point. Instead of complaining about his “re-alignment” to the pine, Westbrook played with noticeable juice. It would behoove both the Lakers and Westbrook to have more nights like this.

Now, they just need it to lead to victories.