Last night was a horrible one for Russell Westbrook. He finished with just five points and was eventually benched during overtime. In the end, his benching helped the Lakers win, and after the game, Westbrook was clearly annoyed about the slander that now surrounds his name.
Despite all of this, Russ still got some support from his teammates. For instance, according to Clutch Point, LeBron James spoke to the media, where he explained that Westbrook is still a great player and that he just needs to get out of his own head.
“I just told him to text me later," LeBron said. "I told him to keep going, to stop second-guessing himself. … He’s an instinctive player, with what he’s done in this league, he should never second guess himself. He’s a big-time player and I have the utmost confidence in his ability.”
AD React To Russell Westbrook's Benching">Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Anthony Davis echoed these sentiments as he told reporters that he has gone through similar rough patches. At the end of the day, Russ just needs to keep doing his thing, and adjust whenever it is needed of him.
“He’s just gotta stay out of his own head, just gotta continue to play and do the little things," Davis said. "When I was going through the whole little thing when I wasn’t playing well, I tried to always do the little things for our team, the intangibles. That kind of gets you going, gets you in a rhythm. That’s what he has to do. He’s got two days to kind of just get away and try to lock back in come Milwaukee. But, as a leader of the team, me, Bron, we try to continue to talk to him and make sure he’s not in his own head and putting a lot of pressure on himself.”
Hopefully, this positive reinforcement will snap Russ out of whatever funk he is currently in. For now, however, things are now looking good in Lakerland.
[Via]