Lakers Rumors

Report: Lakers front office blaming pressure from Klutch Sports as reason for acquiring Russell Westbrook

Published by
Jason Simpson

The Los Angeles Lakers’ disastrous 2021-22 season is over, but the drama hasn’t stopped.

One of the biggest storylines during the season for L.A. revolved around Russell Westbrook’s poor fit with the rest of the roster. He wasn’t able to give the Lakers what they needed throughout the season, and given his play style, it probably wasn’t realistic to expect him to.

When the Lakers acquired Westbrook, some people were ready to call them title favorites, but it’s clear now that the move was a mistake. Internally, it sounds like the organization is directing blame at Klutch Sports Group, the agency that represents both LeBron James and Anthony Davis, for the role it played in getting Westbrook to L.A.

“But James certainly has a strong influence on the Lakers’ decision-making,” wrote Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report. “Multiple sources indicate the team’s front office is internally blaming pressure from Klutch Sports Group (representing both James and Davis) for Westbrook.”

The Lakers finished the 2021-22 season with a 33-49 record. They failed to reach the postseason.

Along the way, Westbrook averaged 18.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 29.8 percent from beyond the arc.

Injuries played a role in L.A.’s struggles this season, but even when the squad’s top players were healthy, there were still flaws. Throughout the season, it became clear that Westbrook doesn’t belong alongside other high-usage stars.

It’ll be interesting to see where the organization goes from here, as Westbrook’s future is very murky. It remains to be seen if he’ll find himself with the Lakers when the 2022-23 season begins. That’s one of the biggest decisions the team has to make this summer.

It’s going to be a busy offseason for L.A. as it looks to put itself in a position to contend for next season’s NBA title.

Jason Simpson

Jason is excited about the LeBron James era of Lakers basketball and hopes that the end result will be multiple championships.

Published by
Jason Simpson

Recent Posts

5-time NBA champion says ‘no real fans care’ about Lakers’ success in NBA Cup

The Los Angeles Lakers have started their NBA Cup schedule off on the right foot…

November 21, 2024

LeBron makes stunning announcement as he takes step back on social media

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James uploaded a screenshot of a social media post on…

November 20, 2024

Private message revealed that Austin Reaves sent Dalton Knecht before they knew they’d be teammates

Los Angeles Lakers players Austin Reaves and Dalton Knecht were familiar with one another before…

November 20, 2024

Iman Shumpert says LeBron ruined today’s game by forming superteams

The proliferation of superteams in the NBA arguably became normalized once LeBron James teamed up…

November 19, 2024

Shaq says he’ll fight Dwight Howard under certain conditions

Dwight Howard has a compelling case to one day be enshrined in the Naismith Memorial…

November 18, 2024

Report: J.J. Redick admires Serbian coaching, wants to send sons to go to basketball camp there

There are several productive players in the NBA right now who grew up in the…

November 18, 2024