Is Russell Westbrook no longer a Hall of Famer?
It's been a rough few months for Russell Westbrook.
The heavily-scrutinized point guard deflected blame for his disappointing season during his exit interview Monday, saying that he felt he wasn’t "given a fair chance" to prove himself upon his arrival in Los Angeles.
Skip Bayless chronicled what he calls the "most bizarre rise of any player" in NBA history and shared what he thinks the future holds for the Los Angeles Lakers guard on a new episode of "The Skip Bayless Show."
"It’s highly possible that Russell Westbrook — sure-fire, slam dunk, first-ballot Hall of Famer — will not be able to find another home in this league, and [that] he'll be out of basketball at age 35," Bayless said. [He] does not belong in the Hall of Fame … [or] in the NBA's all-time 75. … On LeBron [James'] stage, by far the biggest stage Russ has ever played on after OKC, Houston and Washington, Russ finally got exposed.
"He also led the league in surly postgame comments to the media because every question he was asked, his answer would be, ‘Do you know who I am? How dare you ask me that question, I’m Russell Westbrook.' Well, you used to be, or at least we thought you were. But you're not now."
This browser does not support the Video element.
Skip Bayless explains why Los Angeles Lakers guard Russell Westbrook’s days in the NBA could be numbered coming off a frustrating season in L.A.
Westbrook averaged 18.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game for the 2021-22 season. He shot 44.4% from the field — including a lackluster 29.8% from 3-point range — in 78 regular-season games. It's his lowest scoring average since his rookie and sophomore seasons with Oklahoma City (2008-10).
"In his exit interview the other day, Russ blamed Frank Vogel, who defended Russ beyond anybody else in the Lakers organization … [and] blamed made-up media stories that he had to keep responding to that distracted him," Bayless continued. "In the end, he said even LeBron and Anthony Davis didn't really allow Russ to be Russ the way they said they would. … You're even taking shots at the big dogs?
"I'm convinced that Russ will be back next year with the Lakers because I'm also convinced [that] it's virtually impossible to get rid of that contract. … Who wants to wish this nightmare on themselves?"
Westbrook has yet to decide on his $47.1 million player option for next season. If he picks it up, the Lakers will likely try to trade him. If he declines, he will have the freedom to starting looking for his next team.
Wherever that might be.