LeBron James’ Lakers Mistreating Future Hall of Famer Russell Westbrook Angers Damian Lillard

Russell Westbrook had the worst period of his basketball career with LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers.

LeBron James’ Lakers Mistreating Future Hall of Famer Russell Westbrook Angers Damian Lillard

Russell Westbrook, Damian Lillard, and LeBron James (Image via FirstSportz)

In Short
  • Damian Lillard criticized the Lakers for disrespecting Russell Westbrook by having him come off the bench.
  • Westbrook's time with the Lakers ended bitterly, leading to no communication with LeBron James or Anthony Davis since his departure.
  • LeBron James privately acknowledged that the Lakers misjudged their trade for Westbrook, impacting his Hall of Fame career.

There was a time when the basketball world thought that Russell Westbrook was finally going to win an NBA Championship when he joined LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the Los Angeles Lakers.

To trade for the explosive point guard, the franchise had to send Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, and the draft rights to Isaiah Jackson to the Washington Wizards. Even though sending the latter two may have been fine with Lakers’ fans, trading away KCP and Kuzma were decisions that were not met with any level of excitement.

They had been instrumental in the purple and gold organization winning the 2020 bubble championship, and franchise fans felt the two could have stayed, as their roles were important if the Lakers were to contend.

On the other hand, even before Westbrook played a single minute for his new team, there were many who questioned the logic of this trade purely on the basis of how his play fits with LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and the rest of the team.

Eventually, that is how it played out, and the Lakers decided to bring the superstar guard off the bench. That was the beginning of the end of a bitter relationship.

Russ went to the Lakers. Everybody was like, ‘Lakers!’ You know what I mean? Then they got Russ coming off the bench like he’s not a Hall of Famer. Man, that’s Russell Westbrook… like what?

Damian Lillard said on The Last Stand

This was multiple-time All-Star point guard Damian Lillard, who felt that the Lakers disrespected Russell Westbrook during his time with the team.

Russell Westbrook still does not talk to LeBron James after Lakers’ stint

When Russell Westbrook arrived at the Los Angeles Lakers, he was excited about two things. One was that he could play at home. The other was to play alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

The point guard probably felt at the time that he could be the perfect addition to the James-Davis nucleus. Maybe at the time, the concept of the Big 3 was still prevalent. That may have led him to feel that way.

However, it was anything but that, as the UCLA alum found himself facing most of the brunt of the Lakers’ struggles that season. From fans to members of the media, everyone was attacking him. With every passing game, it was becoming evident that Russell Westbrook’s time was up at Crypto.com Arena, and after he was finally traded away, he has not spoken to LeBron James or Anthony Davis since.

Even though he and his wife showed courtesy to Savannah James, the dynamite guard made it clear that he does not talk to the league’s all-time leading scorer.

LeBron James unofficially acknowledged Russell Westbrook was wrong

Russell Westbrook returned to the Crypto.com Arena, this time with the other team that was based out of that arena until recently. With the Clippers, the former league MVP had a resurgent time. However, the Sixth Man role from his Lakers’ days stuck with him.

Russell Westbrook and LeBron James
Westbrook and James (Image via NBA Gunlukleri/X)

Even though he has switched two teams since, the 6’4″ star still performs mostly in the backup role. As Damian Lillard mentioned, it was not what should have been the situation with someone who was destined to be a Hall of Famer after his exploits with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

But now, this is Westbrook’s reality, as he was forced to accept a bench role when he was with the Lakers. If only LeBron James and the franchise’s top brass had listened to critics, maybe history would have been kinder to the father of three.

The other father of three, the one who has played the most seasons in NBA history, acknowledged privately that he and the Lakers’ top brass ‘misjudged’ their trade for Russell Westbrook. Even though James has a good relationship with most of the players in the NBA, it might take a long time after both he and his former teammate retire for this ‘beef’ to end.

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