“He’s a guy that, when he plays freely, he’s a monster.” – Shaquille O’ Neal implies Russell Westbrook was too humble to Lebron James, says he should develop into a role player

Being humble shouldn’t be Russell Westbrook’s energy, in accordance to Shaquille O’Neal. The former Los Angeles Lakers legend summed up why Westbrook’s humility in direction of his teammates was one motive why he had a poor 2021-22 season.

The Lakers are wanting to get again to successful methods after a poor season final yr. Westbrook had one of many worst seasons of his profession throughout his first yr in Los Angeles.

Before becoming a member of the Lakers, Westbrook averaged 22.2 factors, 11.7 assists and 11.5 rebounds per recreation for the Washington Wizards. He additionally managed to lead the Wizards to the playoffs with teammate Bradley Beal.

However, his numbers dropped in Los Angeles. The nine-time All-Star completed the season with 18.5 factors, 7.1 assists and seven.4 rebounds. Even although he averaged much less turnovers, his performances had been closely criticized within the media.

In a latest interview with Dime Magazine, Shaq shared why he thought the previous MVP’s humility was the rationale issues didn’t work out for him. He stated:

“I feel he was simply, and I say this respectfully, I simply assume he was displaying too a lot respect.

“He was just being too nice. I don’t know the relationship between him and LeBron, but if you put that down on paper and I don’t know nothing about basketball, that’s a hell of a backcourt, Russell Westbrook and LeBron James… That’s how it was me, he was just thinking too much. He’s a guy that, when he plays freely, he’s a monster.“

Can the Lakers make the Russell Westbrook-Patrick Beverley backcourt work?

The Lakers shocked everybody when they signed Patrick Beverley a few weeks in the past. Just just like the Rudy Gobert commerce, nobody noticed this coming.

It’s identified league-wide that there is been some unhealthy blood between Westbrook and Beverley. It stemmed early of their careers when Pat Bev went a little too aggressive in hounding the star level guard. As a consequence, Westbrook suffered a severe damage to his proper knee. Since then, the 2 have expressed their dislike in direction of one another.

One notable factor throughout Pat Bev’s introductory press convention was his interplay with Russell Westbrook. During his interview, the defensive specialist voiced his pleasure in direction of being on the identical staff as the previous MVP.

A brand new period of Lakers basketball is upon us. Russell Westbrook and Patrick Beverley taking part in collectively will make the 2022-23 season much more thrilling.