Los Angeles Lakers guard Russell Westbrook is known for his fiery disposition on the court. He's built a reputation over the years as a player who will get on his opponents' throats from tip-off. During the Lakers' preseason game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Westbrook's competitive spirit was in full display once more.

During the first quarter, Russell Westbrook stripped the ball off Jaden McDaniels as the third-year forward was making his way into the rim. Kyle Anderson recovered the ball and kicked it out for an open three-ball from Naz Reid; however, the tension between Westbrook and McDaniels began to heat up.

As soon as Reid hoisted up his shot, McDaniels gave a light nudge to Westbrook while jockeying for position underneath the boards. The 33-year old point guard retaliated with a late push of his own straight into the chest of McDaniels. After the ball swished through the net, the ball landed straight in McDaniels' grasp, and he proceeded to throw the ball back to an inbounding Russell Westbrook.

However, Westbrook did not perceive McDaniels' actions in a good way, and thus ensued the shenanigans.

Russell Westbrook threw a one-handed, lefty bullet pass straight to the chest of Jaden McDaniels, who caught the ball square. McDaniels, probably confused as to what was going on, threw the ball back to Westbrook, prompting Patrick Beverley and LeBron James to call the attention of the nearest official.

But of course, the former MVP had to have the final say, as he threw a chest pass back towards McDaniels who was already backpedaling towards the other end of the court.

Jaden McDaniels received praise for his maturity from fans on Twitter. Only 22 years old, fans acknowledged how McDaniels did his best in not further escalating what seemed to be an innocuous situation in the first place.

https://twitter.com/3otambitious/status/1580392647625441280?s=20&t=2yi2ustEgpFhGnH5Ia-UQQ

While there are a lot of things to be said about Russell Westbrook, to say he doesn't care about the game of basketball is not one of them. He is already up to his usual antics five games into the preseason, which could either endear him to fans who love his passion or frustrate them even more, what with his declining contributions on the court not being worth this kind of distraction.

At the end of the day, Lakers fans will hope that Westbrook can back this kind of brashness and redeem himself from a difficult debut season in purple and gold.