Russ Gonna Russ
This might be the highlight of Russell Westbrook’s season so far
Russell Westbrook has had a rocky start in Los Angeles. We even went as far as to call it a failure after approximately two games, and that was before LeBron James went down with injury. You might have thought that Westbrook would thrive in his absence, able to dominate the ball and dictate play in his typical fashion, but that hasn’t exactly been the case. Westbrook is shooting under 43% from the floor and averaging over five turnovers a game while posting a Player Efficiency Rating that is smack dab the league average. If you’re a championship contender—and the Lakers at least think they are—that's not what you want from one of your three Musketeers (Porthos, in this case).
But never fear La La Land, if this instant classic highlight from Wednesday night is any indication, Westbrook is about to catch fire.
Mixtape handles. A turnaround J that Jordan might take personally. Poetry’s motion has never been more beautiful.
Obviously we’re being sarcastic and obviously this one clip—however hilarious—has very little to do with Westbrook’s overall season, but still, not a good look for a guy A. can’t shoot the basketball right now and B. hates criticism. Oh, and in case you were wondering, the Lakers would go on to lose to the Bucks 109-102, dropping to 8-8 on the season.
The good news is that LeBron is scheduled to return Friday night against the Celtics, but if this is the kind of yakety sax basketball Russ and the Lakers are playing right now, it’s hard to imagine that even he, the self-anointed king himself, will be able to fix it.