The Los Angeles Lakers are rightfully going through a moment of soul-searching right now.
This is because the team lost horribly on Sunday night at home to the New Orleans Pelicans.
In a season of many lows, this was probably the largest and its led many to wonder what is next for the team and why they are having just so much trouble.
One of the people questioning the team and how they can come back from this is Russell Westbrook.
Russell Westbrook very bluntly said he thinks opponents scouting report is just to play harder than the Lakers. "And it’s working. Until we determine and have the determination that we’re not gonna allow it, especially on our home floor, it will continue to happen to us."
— Bill Oram (@billoram) February 28, 2022
Speaking after the game, Westbrook was quite honest about why other teams keep knocking out the Lakers.
Westbrook blamed other teams’ scouting reports, which he believes tell opponents to just play harder than the Lakers.
“And it’s working,” Westbrook told the media.
“Until we determine and have the determination that we’re not gonna allow it, especially on our home floor, it will continue to happen to us.”
But how does LA find that determination that Westbrook is speaking of?
LA Losing Again
This has become a habit for the Lakers: they are beaten by a team that had no business defeating them and then they take to the post-game press conference to talk about how they can get better.
We have heard Westbrook and others on the team say that LA just needs more enthusiasm, or a healthier roster, or a stronger desire to win.
However, we have rarely seen the team following through on finding those things.
The missing pieces LA needs are still missing.
So while Westbrook is right that nothing will change until the squad has true determination to win, there is not much confidence that they will actually find that determination.
And they need to find it soon because the clock is ticking and the postseason is coming – with or without the Lakers.
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