Lakers players knew LeBron James lied about liking Russell Westbrook

LeBron James and Anthony Davis nixed a deal for Buddy Hield and pushed the Los Angeles Lakers to pursue Russell Westbrook instead. The fit was questionable and they were a mediocre 11-10 when they were able to be on the court.

James and Davis had Westbrook’s back, at least publically, throughout this tough season. Westbrook’s shot was way off, his confidence wasn’t there, and the fans were going at him night in and night out.

But even despite their words of support, Westbrook never actually felt like the organization had his back. In his exit interview, the former MVP claimed he was never given a fair chance to be himself.

Russell Westbrook Says The Lakers Didn’t Give Him A Fair Chance

“When Dan Woike mentions that LeBron and AD said many times throughout the year, ‘Let Russ be Russ,’ Russell Westbrook immediately responds: ‘Yeah, but that wasn’t true. Let’s be honest,'” reported Kyle Goon of Southern California News Group.

“Russell Westbrook said ‘top to bottom’ on coming to L.A.: ‘I just felt like I was never given a fair chance to be who I needed to be to help this team,'” Goon added.

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LeBron James Praises Westbrook, Says He Can’t Make Moves For The Team

James took some time to address Westbrook’s situation in his own exit interview. He raved about the energy he brought to the floor and added that he loved being teammates with him this season:

“One thing about Russ that I’ll love, that I’ll always love, is his competitive spirit that he brings every single night,” LeBron said.“To have a guy that’s reliable and can put on the uniform every single night, you have to respect that.I’m not going to sit here and make decisions for the front office … but I love being a teammate with Russ,” he added.

Lakers Players Knew LeBron Wasn’t Honest About Westbrook

Nonetheless, no one’s buying James’ side of the story, especially not his teammates. According to a report by the Los Angeles Times, Lakers players were sick and tired of James’ body language after Westbrook’s erratic play:

“Midway through the season, players began to notice James’ body language after poor Westbrook play, an on-court sign of recognition that his and the Lakers’ plan wasn’t going to work. Some Lakers players were bothered by how regularly James’ shoulders would slump and how his head would hang after botched opportunities to score or defend,” read the report.

This isn’t the first time that a teammate calls LeBron a two-face, nor it will be the last. But regardless of who’s telling the truth or not, it’s clear that Westbrook’s tenure in L.A. is all but over.