The Los Angeles Lakers improbably pulled off a trade for Russell Westbrook as their third star, but not before getting some shade thrown at him by the owner of his former team, Ted Leonsis.
The Washington Wizards owner, who also owns the Capitals, spoke out to ESPN's Emily Kaplan about the latest extension signed by NHL franchise player and longtime D.C. icon Alex Ovechkin. Towards the end of the feature, Leonsis couldn't help but compare Ovie's loyalty to that of Westbrook, who now finds himself on the Lakers after his third trade in three seasons.
“We had a superstar player with the Wizards, he had an opportunity and wanted to be traded to the Lakers,” Leonsis said. “And I was dealing with that as we were announcing Alex.”
“I couldn't help but self-reflect on what a difference it is. Here's a great player in Russell Westbrook, played in OKC, wanted to be traded, went to Houston, wanted to be traded, came to D.C., wanted to be traded and is now in Los Angeles. He's an unbelievably great person and an unbelievably great player. But that's the difference between the NBA and the NHL, I suppose.”
While Leonsis doesn't outright blast Russell Westbrook, there definitely feels like a veiled shot in his parting words as he heads to the Lakers. Russ and Bradley Beal were an exciting, yet short-lived duo with the Wizards that really hit their stride towards the latter half of the season. Now Westbrook needs to adjust yet again on a team that might bring him his best chance at a title in years.
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