Russell Westbrook has been a target of frustrated Lakers fans ever since the franchise acquired him in a trade with the Washington Wizards in the summer of 2021. Some Lakers fans couldn’t even wait until the regular season to begin abusing Westbrook.
They jumped on two clips from the Lakers’ exhibition match with the Timberwolves to claim that Westbrook has already checked out and does not consider himself a part of the team. One time, Westbrook skipped the team’s morning huddle, while another time, Patrick Beverley attempted to gather the veterans in the huddle after a play.
It's the preseason and I don't read much into anything. But if I were to read too much into something………. pic.twitter.com/Hgcb91PNu5
— Jacob Rude (@JacobRude) October 13, 2022
In a response to the first one, the guard has this to say- “Pregame, I’ve been doing that since I’ve been in the league for years, man,” he claimed that it was a cut clip to manipulate the viewers saying that “I think they just cut the video and obviously the internet is going to take it and run with whatever they need to run with. But, I’ve been doing the same ritual since I’ve been in the league.”
Russell Westbrook explained his view of the videos of him and his Lakers teammates that went viral from Wednesday’s preseason loss today at practice. pic.twitter.com/I0sV212MS1
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) October 13, 2022
Westbrook responded to the latter allegation saying that he was busy talking to the coach while Patrick Beverley was gathering the players. “As far as the other video, I was actually talking to the coaches and they cut that video in half as well,” Westbrook said. “I was talking to the coaches about a missed coverage. So, I don’t pay no mind to it, man.”
The 33-year-old guard, on the other hand, is unaffected by the backlash he is receiving as a result of these baseless accusations. He claimed to be well accustomed to this type of attitude and yet he was determined to give his best on the court.
Westbrook himself confirms, “That’s been the same for me, honestly, man, through my career,” he continues, “I’m very used to it. And I’m very accustomed to it. That’s why I’ve just been blessed and thankful to be able to continue to play each year and keep my head down and continue competing. And whatever comes with the extra stuff, comes with it. It’s not up to me to be able to make videos and things for the internet. I just go out and do my job.”
Time will eventually prove if fans’ claims of Westbrook’s detachment from the team have any truth to them. Until now, it appears that everything has been staged and fabricated in order to drag the star into the mud.
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