Hall of Famer and Lakers veteran James Worthy drops the truth bomb on the Lakers and their point guard Russell Westbrook, adding he doesn’t want Brodie to feel sorry for himself.
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The LA Lakers are currently facing a lot of the heat for their poor performance this season. The Jeanie Buss-owned team is seven games below +500, finding itself in the play-in tournament. The acquiring of Russell Westbrook and a group of accomplished veterans hasn’t worked for the team so far.
The Lakers point guard has been the main subject of criticism and social media trolls. His turnover rate and inability to shoot the ball continue to haunt him on a daily basis. Though the Lakers have a variety of reasons for their disappointing run, Russ and head coach Frank Vogel have been enduring most of the brunt.
The crowd at Crypto.com hasn’t been very kind to Mr. Triple-Double as well, booing him on the court. In what many believe, the outside noise is getting into Westbrook’s head, who looks detached on the court. The former MVP seems underconfident, especially while taking shots.
“I need to be better overall. What I’m doing right now isn’t good enough.” Russell Westbrook following a 5-17 shooting night in #Lakers loss to Dallas. pic.twitter.com/mgM55WBaxT
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) March 2, 2022
Recently, three-time NBA champion James Worthy addressed the struggles of the Lakers, adding Westbrook should not feel sorry for himself and be aggressive on the court.
James Worthy gives his piece of advice to Russell Westbrook.
Having played his entire 12 seasons career with the LA Lakers and won three championships, including a Finals MVP, Worthy is aware of the pressures and expectations from the city and organization. In a recent interview, Worthy parted some words of wisdom to Westbrook.
The two-time scoring champion is currently averaging 4.0 TPG, a visible reduction from his previous games. However, he seems lost and hesitant to take shots.
Worthy had the following to say about Westbrook.
“I personally don’t like to see Russ with zero turnovers. I like to see him with at least three or four maybe. That means he’s aggressive, he has an aggressive style of play, and when he’s in that mode, he’s productive.”
“He’s got to stop feeling sorry for himself and just go out and get rebounds, play defense, and I think Russ can get back to being the productive player that we need,” Worthy said.
.@JamesWorthy42 & @RealAClifton discuss their takeaways from the #Lakers loss to Dallas and look ahead at the upcoming schedule. pic.twitter.com/YquExxOwtp
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) March 3, 2022
Westbrook is certainly vital to the Lakers in order for them to win games. However, the former OKC superstar needs to adapt to the new settings in LA, where LeBron would primarily have the ball in his hands.
One hopes Russ is able to flip the switch as we enter the final leg of the season, silencing his critics and naysayers.