Heated Russell Westbrook Argument with Lakers Coach Exposed

The Los Angeles Lakers didn’t make the playoffs this season. Players finished the season with a bad record and some of the players will be forced to leave the team in the offseason. The Lakers already waived Trevor Ariza. The season is over for him and other Lakers players and now we get a clearer picture for the situation in LA. According to Dan Woike and Broderick Turner, Russell Westbrook once had a heated argument with head coach Frank Vogel.

It happened in training camp and both Woike and Turner say Westbrook never respected the Lakers head coach.

“Russ never respected Frank from Day 1,” said one member of the Lakers staff. “The moment Frank said anybody who gets the rebound can bring it up the court, which is just how the NBA is played these days, Russ was like, ‘Naw, I’m the point guard. Give the ball to me. Everybody run.’ Frank was like, ‘No, we have Talen [Horton-Tucker]. We have Austin [Reaves]. We have Malik [Monk]. LeBron [James]. We have AD [Anthony Davis]. They can all bring the ball up.’ He was like, ‘Nope, I’m the point guard. Give me that s—. Everybody get out the way.’ From that point on, in training camp, it was a wrap, ‘cause now Russ is a fish out of water. He doesn’t know what to do. That’s how that started.”

Russell Westbrook had an argument with his head coach over his role in LA

Westbrook was obviously a problem from Day 1. Well, the whole problem started a lot earlier. LeBron and AD met with the nine-time All-Star last summer. AD and Russ arrived at LeBron’s house to discuss his role in LA. Let’s not forget that LeBron and Davis actually urged the front office to get Westbrook. They get along really well, but Westbrook was not the third player behind AD and LeBron. He wasn’t a good fit.

“Midway through the season, players began to notice James’ body language after poor Westbrook play, an on-court sign of recognition that his and the Lakers’ plan wasn’t going to work,” Woike and Turner reported. “Some Lakers players were bothered by how regularly James’ shoulders would slump and how his head would hang after botched opportunities to score or defend.”

Westbrook finished the regular season with great stats, but this was of no help for the team. He was averaging 18.5 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 7.1 assists per game while going 44.4% from the field, 29.8% from beyond the arc, and 66.7% from the free-throw line. He had 295 turnovers and too many “bricks”.

Rob Pelinka has to make a decision on Westbrook. He didn’t trade him at the deadline. Most analyst believe that Westbrook should find his home somewhere else.