“Russell Westbrook reminded us all of who the hell he is, here’s hoping this is a turning point for him”: An avid critic Stephen A. Smith is in awe of the former MVP’s performance against Michael Jordan’s Hornets

ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith heaps praises of Russell Westbrook in light of his recent performance against the Charlotte Hornets.

Russell Westbrook finally showed us why he will always be a superstar. The Lakers point guard set a record for his team, earlier held by the late Kobe Bryant. Westbrook, who had a mere 5-points in the first half against the Hornets, would drop 30-points in the second half but failed to sync the potential 3-point game-winner.

Russ became the FIRST Laker with a 30-point half since Kobe Bryant did it in his final game 🔥 pic.twitter.com/MDndRnY8wA

— ESPN (@espn) January 29, 2022

The Lakers were playing without their superstar duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis, who were out with knee soreness and wrist soreness, respectively. However, Westbrook would take the reigns in his hands, putting up a spectacle at the Spectrum Center. Brodie was 12-for-23 from the field and 80% from the free-throw line.

It was a well-deserved night for Westbrook, who has been facing lot of heat for his performances. It has been a rough ride for the two-time scoring champion. From being benched in the final minutes of a game to constantly being targetted on social media and most recently rumors of being traded, Westbrook has seen it all this season.

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However, his incredible performance against the Hornets on Friday night had avid critic Stephen A. Smith in awe of him as well.

Stephen A. Smith calls Russell Westbrook a Warrior in light of his performance against LaMelo Ball and co.

A constant complaint Smith has had against Westbrook over the years is his inability to win games. The ESPN analyst is no longer impressed with the fancy statistics of Brodie. Things went too far when Mrs. Westbrook called out Smith for his contact attacks on her husband.

Smith has called out Westbrook on several occasions for not winning the chip despite having Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Paul George as his teammates, to name a few. The First Take analyst has criticized the former OKC superstar’s inability to shoot and high turnover rate.

Stephen A wasn’t a fan of the Lakers acquiring Westbrook as he felt the team needed shooting, which the nine-time All-Star couldn’t provide.

However, his Friday night’s performance against the Lakers has impressed Smith the most, going by the latter’s tweets.

No matter what happens at the end of this @Lakers/@hornets game, @russwest44 reminded us all of who the hell he is. -27pt-differential in the 1st, Russ has 30 in the 2nd half, playing for the first time w/o @KingJames & @AntDavis23. Sensational. He’s in attack mode.#EXACTLY

— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) January 29, 2022

This is a night to be proud of @russwest44. That was a good last shot, based on what he had made the entire 2nd half. Here’s hoping this is a turning point for him. Impossible to root against him when he plays like that. @Lakers may benefit big time down the road.#Warrior

— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) January 29, 2022

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Smith applauding Westbrook is a great sign for sports journalism as nobody has ever questioned Brodie’s integrity towards the game.