With LeBron James and Anthony Davis out, Russell Westbrook channeled his inner Kobe Bryant against the Charlotte Hornets. Unfortunately, though, it was not enough to help the Los Angeles Lakers win.
Westbrook exploded for 30 points in the second half after the Lakers fell by 16 points in the first 24 minutes of play. In the process, he became the first player since Bryant to score at least 30 points in a half. The last time Kobe did it was in 2016 in his final game against the Jazz, scoring 38 in the second half, per ESPN Stats & Info.
Russ has led the Lakers almost all the way back, with 30 second-half points (and counting).
He's the first Laker with 30 points in a half since Kobe Bryant in his final game (38 in the 2nd half on April 13, 2016 vs Jazz) pic.twitter.com/Lb4dftwD9S
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 29, 2022
What's interesting, though, was it it's a tale of two halves for Russell Westbrook. He scored a total of 35 points in the game, which means he made just five in the opening half before his explosion.
As another ESPN stat pointed out, he was a -27 in the plus-minus box score in the first half, which is tied for the worst in his career.
Indeed, what can only imagine what would the results be had Westbrook been hot right from the start and did not allow the Hornets to get a comfortable lead. The Lakers were able to cut the lead down to just one (115-114) with less than 10 seconds remaining, but their efforts were a little too late to complete the comeback.
Hopefully, though, the performance will be enough to boost the confidence of Westbrook and the Lakers as they try to turn their season around.
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