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Lakers to bring Russell Westbrook off the bench vs Kings
Joe Lyons is a sports writer and basketball expert for Basketball Insiders. Joe has a keen eye for the betting markets within the NBA and a great passion for the game of basketball. also been published by Nottingham Forest FC, working with the academy and senior teams to produce content on matchdays. He formerly covered the Premier League and EFL as an on-site reporter during the 2020/21 season for Prost International. He is an expert in a range of other sports including soccer, horse racing darts and American football. Joe specialises in long form SEO content alongside news, tips and betting.
All posts by Joe LyonsUpdated14 Oct 2022
Russell Westbrook will play as the Los Angeles Lakers’ sixth man in their final preseason game against the Sacramento Kings tonight, according to reports.
The Lakers are planning to bring the former MVP off the bench in tonight’s final preseason game away in Sacramento with Westbrook ‘quarterbacking the second unit’.
ESPN reporting with @Mcten: The Lakers are planning to bring Russell Westbrook off the bench in the final preseason game vs. Kings tonight (ESPN, 10 ET). Darvin Ham and Westbrook have been exploring possibility of Westbrook quarterbacking second unit and they'll try it tonight.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 14, 2022
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, there is a hope that Westbrook can play freer and faster with the ball in his hands in the second unit and have to worry less about fitting away from the ball around the starting group.
This is ‘certainly an idea’ the Lakers will continue to discuss ahead of the regular season opener on Tuesday night in Golden State, as Los Angeles travel to face the reigning champions led by Steph Curry.
Earlier this week, Westbrook was pictured ignoring a team huddle called by Patrick Beverley alongside LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Lonnie Walker.
The Lakers were down five with ten minutes remaining in the third quarter when the huddle took place, but the 2017 MVP seemed less than interested in what his teammates had to say.
Russell Westbrook ignoring the team huddle 👀😬 pic.twitter.com/3zrpBplZua
— The Laker Files (@LakerFiles) October 13, 2022
In a night to forget for Westbrook, shooting 1/3 from the floor with 3/6 free throws in 25 minutes, this was another reality check for the Lakers who have seriously considered trading the 33-year-old before the February 9 trade deadline next year.
The former Oklahoma City star is +15000 to win the MVP award for a second time in NBA betting, however those odds may slash if a trade occurs before the start of the regular season on October 18.
