Anthony Davis admits the Lakers plan to leave Russell Westbrook wide open backfired - "He made the shots"

LA Lakers superstar Anthony Davis shared his team's approach towards guarding Russell Westbrook during his recent postgame media session. While highlighting that they intended to leave Westbrook open, Davis also admitted that the plan backfired.

The "Battle of LA" saw the Clippers come out on top with a 125-118 win. Although the scoreline indicated a close game, the Clippers dominated from the start.

Much of the Clippers' early success could be owed to Russell Westbrook. Westbrook came up with some big buckets early in the first half. These shots would eventually ignite the Clippers' offense as Norman Powell and Kawhi Leonard practically led the onslaught on the Lakers' defense.

Giving Brodie several open looks at the rim was apparently not an accident. After the loss, LA Lakers superstar Anthony Davis shared the team's defensive strategy towards guarding Westbrook. While talking about Brodie's impact on the game, he said:

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"He made a couple of threes, a couple of pull ups. That's an energy booster for them."

He then highlighted the Lakers' defensive plan.

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"Our game plan was for them to shoot the ball, and he made them. He made the shots, and that snowballed down to everybody else to start making shots."

Mark Medina

@MarkG_Medina

Lakers’ Anthony Davis on facing Russell Westbrook: “Our game plan was for them to shoot the ball, and he made them. He made the shots, and that snowballed down to everybody else.”

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Lakers’ Anthony Davis on facing Russell Westbrook: “Our game plan was for them to shoot the ball, and he made them. He made the shots, and that snowballed down to everybody else.” https://t.co/3CLd0h6Yuj

As Davis mentioned, Russell Westbrook's early baskets did have a positive impact on the Clippers' offense.

However, Russ remained a double-edged sword in many ways. With some costly turnovers at the end of the first half and early in the second, Westbrook almost let the Lakers back into the game.

Overall, however, Brodie had a pretty solid outing against his former team. Having helped his current side rise to fifth in the West, the Clippers look solid.

Ballislife Bets

@BallislifeBets

Russell Westbrook is out for REVENGE against his former team tonight

The Clippers (-125 ML) have raced out to a double-digit lead over the Lakers in this pivotal matchup for playoff seeding

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Russell Westbrook is out for REVENGE against his former team tonight 👀

The Clippers (-125 ML) have raced out to a double-digit lead over the Lakers in this pivotal matchup for playoff seeding 🔥🔥

https://t.co/a8g7KeJ0G7

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Russell Westbrook will be key for the Clippers moving forward

The Los Angeles Clippers appear to be cruising towards either the fifth or sixth seed in the West at this rate. This presents a potential matchup against either the Phoenix Suns or the Sacramento Kings. Either way, the Clippers will certainly need all the help they can get.

In this regard, Russell Westbrook will undoubtedly be huge for the Clippers in the playoffs. Considering that the team is already facing a shortfall of superstars with Paul George currently sidelined, Westbrook could play a bigger role on the roster. As their primary playmaker, the Clippers will likely be fairly dependent upon Russ to get things going with the starting rotation.

However, his propensity to turn the ball over and make poor decisions on the hardwood is still a major concern. However, given that he has been relatively more productive with the Clippers, the team could opt to rely on him more.

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