Russell Westbrook's basketball career has spiraled out of control since joining the Los Angeles Lakers. In fact, his descent is reminiscent of Allen Iverson's after he left the Philadelphia76ers. Much like Westbrook, Iverson was only interested in being one kind of a player, a ball dominant star. Iverson refused to play another role, and soon NBA teams could not justify having him on their roster as the first option.
When Allen Iverson started bouncing around the league, it became clear that his career was on its last leg. Iverson could still put the ball into the basket, and he was a fan favorite. Unfortunately, Iverson had not proven that he could win it all, or even be a good teammate. Allen Iverson had the option of assuming the "6th man scorer off of the bench" role, but his ego would not allow it. Iverson was soon out of the league because he remained inflexible to change.
Russell Westbrook has already reached the downward phase of his career, having played on a different team in each of the past four seasons. His primary issue is that he is a low IQ basketball player. Westbrook either doesn't understand what’s wrong with his game, or he does not care. In an interview, Russell Westbrook stated that the issue in Los Angeles was his no longer averaging a triple-double. In reality he averages 4.0 TO s per game which is equivalent to being a "secret agent" for the opposing team. Also, Laker fans have chanted "Westbrick" during games after far too many of his errant shots last season.
Does Russell Westbrook need to be out of the league for a year or more, like Camelo Anthony for it to finally sink in. Maybe he will never get it. This is the last year of his contract ($47M), and it is a safe to believe that no other teams will pay him anything close to this salary again. Westbrook is the highest paid Laker, and he is simply not worth it. He could very well go from league MVP to out of the league in the blink of an eye.
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