Russell Westbrook acknowledges he needs to make a big ‘sacrifice’ for the Lakers to be successful

Peter Dewey
3 Min Read

The Los Angeles Lakers haven’t had a great start to the 2021-22 season, as they are just 21-21 through their first 42 games.

Despite trading for guard Russell Westbrook this past offseason, the Lakers have not been able to sustain consistent success. It hasn’t helped that both LeBron James and Anthony Davis have dealt with injuries.

Westbrook told The Athletic’s Sam Amick that he knows he needs to make the “biggest sacrifice” for Los Angeles to find success this season.

“We’re all trying to figure it out as a team, as a unit, to be able to say, ‘Ok, how can we figure this out?’” Westbrook said. “And I know I’m the one who has got to make the biggest sacrifice — and I understand that — so I’ve got to be able to figure out a way to be able to make the best out of it and make the best for this team and that’s it.”

Westbrook has been struggling as of late, as he’s shot just 8-for-40 from the field over his last three games.

So far in the 2021-22 season, Westbrook is averaging 18.7 points, 8.2 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game while shooting 43.7 percent from the field and 28.8 percent from beyond the arc.

While the high-usage star has played a certain way throughout the majority of his career, he revealed that he’s still trying to find the best way to make an impact with Los Angeles.

“Trying to figure it out,” Westbrook said. “I mean, we still don’t have the answer. We done changed the way we play a couple times (laughs). Just for me, it’s trying to figure out the best way to be able to implement how I play the game with this team.”

Lakers fans will surely love to hear that Westbrook is willing to make adjustments, as the Lakers need to start making changes that will yield positive results this season.

Since winning the NBA title in the 2019-20 season, Los Angeles has gone through some major roster changes. James and Davis are hoping to win another title with L.A.

There is still hope for Los Angeles this season, but Westbrook and company need to find a way to turn things around soon.

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Peter is a graduate of Quinnipiac University where he covered the MAAC and college basketball for three years. He has worked for NBC Sports, the Connecticut Sun and the Meriden Record-Journal covering basketball and other major sports. Follow him on Twitter @peterdewey2.