“Show everybody who the hell you are” – Stephen A. Smith believes Russell Westbrook is lying about being bothered by loss to Indiana Pacers, tells him to be more aggressive
Russell Westbrook was benched late in the LA Lakers' loss Wednesday against the Indiana Pacers, sparking rumors of him falling out of favor in the Lakers camp. After the game, coach Frank Vogel said he played the guys he believed could win the game.
Although Westbrook declined to talk to the media after the game, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski interviewed Westbrook for a story published Friday. According to Wojnarowski, Westbrook was more disappointed in the loss than sitting out for the final four minutes of the game.
On his fourth-quarter benching, Los Angeles Lakers star Russell Westbrook tells ESPN: "Surprised, yes. I was disappointed I didn't go back in, but I'm more disappointed that we lost the damn game." Story: es.pn/3FTKgGB
On ESPN's "Get Up," sports analyst Stephen A. Smith was asked how the change impacts Westbrook and his role with the team, and he had this to say:
"First of all, mad respect for Russell Westbrook, who never cheats the game. He always gives a 100% effort even though everyone wants to point to that play where he let Caris LeVert go to his right which was a boneheaded play. The bottom line is, I didn't see a lack of effort. He just made a mistake in how he defended the kid."
"Having said all of that, Russell Westbrook is lying. Oh, yes, make no mistake about it. He's lost enough games in a Lakers uniform to be less bothered by the loss than he is by the fact that he was benched. Russell Westbrook doesn't get benched.
"He can sit up there and say all he wants to, that the loss bothered him. But the fact that this perennial All-Star, this future Hall of Famer, this walking triple-double was sat down in favor of the likes of an Austin Reaves, a Malik Monk, Stanley Johnson, people like that, please.
"(He) has to get back to what he was when I believe it was the month of February in 2020 where he was player of the month, where he was playing like a monster attacking the basket. Forget about what you can't do, show the world what you can do. Remind everybody of who the hell you are. You're Russell freaking Westbrook. Attack the basket with vigor."
Westbrook has been a shadow of himself, having not played at the level many expected. In a 101-95 win against the Utah Jazz on Monday, he showed glimpses of how ferocious he could be attacking the basket with a dunk on Rudy Gobert. Overall, he has lost the wind in his sails and is not as much of a high flier as he once was.
Russell Westbrook has not had the expected impact since joining the LA Lakers
Coming into the season, Westbrook's acquisition was a high-profile signing, teaming up with lebron-james" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">LeBron James and Anthony Davis to form a big three to compete against the Brooklyn Nets. But instead the Lakers (22-23) have struggled to find a winning formula.
The Lakers have not enjoyed a five-game winning streak at any point and are tied for seventh in the Western Conference. The idea of signing a player like Russ was to ensure the team can win without LeBron or Davis, but that proves unlikely with each passing day.
🤯 RUSSELL WESTBROOK BRINGS THE BOOM 🤯
Throwing it DOWN on NBA TV! https://t.co/LanNVmUZsF
Westbrook's turnover rate has been a major issue since he donned the purple and gold. Despite taking better care of the ball in recent outings, the 33-year-old still leads the league in turnovers.
Westbrook is averaging 18.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 7.8 assists. His shooting has been woeful, knocking down 43.3% of his 16.1 field goal attempts per game.