NBA Rumors: The underrated aspect of Russell Westbrook valued by Lakers owner

When the Lakers acquired Russell Westbrook from the Wizards in a blockbusterlast year, the expectations were through the roof. However, only a few months later the team was reportedly exploring trades for the 9x NBA All-Star.

Brodie struggled to connect with his teammates, his contribution on both ends of the floor was poor, and he was made the scapegoat for the team’s disappointing season. Therefore, many still expect him to be traded.

Westbrook opted into his player option to stay in Los Angeles, yet his futureremains unclear. While manyfans felt they’ve seen enough of him with the Purple and Gold,the Lakers’ ownership seems to appreciate one aspect that went unnoticed for most last season.

Jeanie Buss appreciatedRussell Westbrook’s availability in first year with Lakers

In an interview with Sam Amick of The Athletic, Lakers owner Jeanie Buss claimed that Russell Westbrook was the team’s best player last season. Needless to say, that statement raised a lot of eyebrows.

“All I can say is that, from my point of view, (Westbrook) was our best player last year,” Buss said.”He played pretty much every single game, showed up, worked hard. You know, I would have loved to have seen what this team would have looked like if they stayed healthy. It’s really tough to win when Anthony Davis isn’t on the court. LeBron was hurt a lot of the season. But Russ showed up every game and played hard every night. And, you know, I just really appreciate him for who he is and what he brings to the team.”

Just like anyone who read herstatement, Amick couldn’t believe shesaid that Westbrook was the best Laker of the season. When he later reached out, Buss clarified that what she meant was that Westbrook was their most consistent player. His availability throughout the season may have been undervalued by most fans, but not by Buss.

“Yes, as you might imagine, I did a double take when Jeanie shared her viewpoint that Westbrook was the best the Lakers had to offer last season. By most accounts — yours truly included — his debut season with the Lakers was an unmitigated disaster,” Amick wrote.

“So after the interview ended, when I realized that I’d failed to follow up quickly enough to get total clarity on this stunning take, I decided to send Buss a note asking if this was her actual belief. ‘The word I should have used was consistent,’ she wrote via text message. ‘He played 78 games last season.'”

That’s a fair point. But of course, it doesn’t change the fact that he didn’t perform like everyoneexpected last season. The Lakers are publicly showing support for Westbrook, but there are signs that a divorce could be comingsoon.