"Frank Vogel stuck up for him when a lot of other people didn't want him to play the starting role anymore" - Kyle Goon says former Lakers coach didn’t want to lose Russell Westbrook forever

Russell Westbrook criticized former LA Lakers head coach Frank Vogel following a disastrous first season with the team. Westbrook blasted Vogel during the latter's exit interview, calling the relationship between the two “unfortunate.”

Kyle Goon, an NBA analyst covering the Lakers over the past few years, spoke about Vogel's relationship with Westbrook on the Crossover podcast. Here's what he said:

“Frank Vogel stuck up for him when a lot of other people didn’t want him to play the starting role anymore. When Frank Vogel benched him for the first time, he essentially got the thumbs up, ‘You know what, if you need to bring him off the bench, you gotta bring him off the bench.’ But Frank thought, ‘If we do that, we lose him forever.’”

The game Goon was referring to was against the Indiana Pacers on January 10. After a poor run, rumors were rife that Frank Vogel’s job could be on the line if the purple and gold didn’t turn their season around quickly.

The Lakers looked set to win after a solid showing in the first three quarters against the Pacers. In the fourth quarter, behind Caris LeVert’s 22 points, the Pacers produced a rousing comeback to stun the Lakers.

Frank Vogel scrambled for answers and benched Westbrook in the final four minutes of the game. When asked later in the game what went through his mind when he kept Russell Westbrook on the bench, Vogel simply said:

“Playing the guys I thought were going to win the game.”

Westbrook played 27 minutes, scoring 14 points and collecting two rebounds and three assists. He also shot 4-6 from beyond the arc, but had a net rating of -18.

ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported later that the LA Lakers front office had given Vogel the green light to bench Westbrook if necessary.

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Russell Westbrook was angry after being benched against Milwaukee

Los Angeles Lakers v Phoenix Suns

Russell Westbrook didn’t say anything in the four minutes he sat on the bench against the Indiana Pacers. But when Frank Vogel kept him off the floor for the entire fourth quarter in a blowout loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, he snapped.

“I earned the right to be in closing lineups. I mean, numbers will tell you. I don’t have to explain that. But once again, that ain’t my decision,” he said in a post-game interview.

Vogel subbed Westbrook off with more than two minutes remaining in the third quarter and he never got back on the court. The LA Lakers tried to mount a comeback and cut the lead to 10 points, but ended up losing.

At one point during a timeout, LeBron James and Anthony Davis looked visibly tired and flustered. Russell Westbrook reportedly told them he wished he could help, but he could not as he was warming the bench.