Highlights of a former LA champion The Lakers, led by Russell Westbrook, frequently have shining spots.
However, the team’s administrative staff believed it was time to bring in a true star who could help ease some of their load after LeBron James and Anthony Davis suffered some serious injuries in the previous year, and the team just missed the playoffs in 2021 before falling to the Phoenix Suns.
Their wing depth and draft choices helped them obtain Westbrook, and they completed their squad with veteran players who were nearing the conclusion of their careers. In fact, some of the former MVP’s best performances (16 ppg, 7 apg, 6 rpg) came from playing as the sixth player. The former MVP regularly found himself in unusual lines and situations when playing for the Lakers.
But at the 2023 trade deadline, LA realized they would miss the postseason for the second year in a row, so they made the decision to purge and send Westbrook to the Utah Jazz in a multi-team transaction.
One year later, Westbrook has accepted a bench role with the Clippers, and D’Angelo Russell is LA’s starting point guard.
Former Lakers champion Trevor Ariza recently supported Russ, despite the fact that many Lakers fans highlight the drawbacks of his tenure in purple and gold.
Russ dons his heart cap each and every night. He fulfills all of your requests. He was being invited to go play in the dunker area. His game isn’t that. When someone is placed in such a position as to have Bron on your team, they are not going to back down. Russell plays point guard.