From the moment Darvin Hamm became the Lakers coach, he hasn’t let voices outside the franchise skew his view of Russell Westbrook. Instead, the first-year coach embraced him and quickly stated that he had a plan for a nine-time All-Star.
Last season, Westbrook’s production and efficiency dropped dramatically in his first season in Los Angeles. In 78 games, Westbrook averaged 18.5 points per game while his career worst scored 15.0 PER. With the Lakers missing the playoffs last season with several targeting Westbrook as the reason, Hamm believes things will be different with the talented goalkeeper and that he was “prematurely counted”.
Hamm said, “I love Russell Westbrook.” Mark Spears from Andscape. “I have an honest plan. … I think he will thrive. We will not try to reduce his energy. We will just diversify and redirect it.”
Hamm also told Spurs that he plans to start Westbrook next season based on how the team plans to play and the “type of people” who will be on the ground at the same time as the goalkeeper.
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Westbrook recently picked the $47.1 million player option for the 2022-23 season. but Yahoo Sports Chris Haynes reports that the Lakers and Nets have begun commercial discussions about Westbrook and Nets guard Kyrie Irving.
No action has reportedly been taken from those initial discussions. Los Angeles is seeking to return to its place among the elite teams of the Western Conference this season after finishing 33-49 in the 2021-22 campaign.
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