“If he still thinks he’s the MVP… that’s just not gonna work” - Chris Mannix believes accepting the sixth man role could extend Russell Westbrook’s career, says the LA Lakers need to have that conversation with him

Russell Westbrook and his need to accept his position as a sixth man with the Los Angeles Lakers was discussed by Chris Mannix while he was on the Dan Patrik Show.

LA Lakers need to have conversation with Russell Westbrook about his role

Mannix, a writer for Sports Illustrated, outlined:

“If he still thinks he’s the MVP… that’s just not gonna work.”

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After a disappointing season from the LA Lakers, many of their moves from the preseason have come into question. All year long, Russell Westbrook caught flack for his aggression on the ball with such inaccuracy. Many fans were unhappy with his contributions during his first season in LA, yet his contract remains too large to buy out.

Standing with over $40 left for next year, Russell Westbrook is arguably stuck in LA. After his lackluster efforts this season, teams are not willing to pay out for him.

As the situation in LA escalated to coach Frank Vogel getting fired, Jeanie Buss turned to 13x champion Phil Jackson for advice going forward. Jackson, then, weighed in on his opinion to keep Russell and rid the squad of LeBron James primarily to save the bank in LA.

With no realistic future of LeBron leaving the Lakers, Mannix outlines how Russell Westbrook will have to adapt to being a sixth man. Him handling the ball as a primary guard this season ended unappealing to most, leading Chris to believe Russ’ days as an MVP caliber player are over.

LeBron James had led the league with 30.3 points-per-game for some time this season, proving he is far from slowing down. As James, once again, proved his invaluable worth, Los Angeles ridding themselves of their leader seems out of reach. They will simply use Phil Jackson’s opinion to keep the wallet in LA open to better their future.

In any case, Russell Westbrook did not have as poor of a season as most believe. Russ averaged 18.1 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 7.1 assists per game this season for LA. What caught most headlines was Westbrook’s inability to slow his game down, despite his terrible turnover rate. What failed to come forward later was Russell Westbrook actually ending the season with his lowest turnover rate since 2013-14 with OKC (3.8 per game).

With showing improvement to end the season, Westbrook may have proved he has learned to adapt down into his role. Maintaining his lowest turnover rate since 2013 after catching negativity for it shows he is in fact coachable. After showing he can fix his game, understanding his sixth man role next season may come easier than most believe.

Getting used to playing alongside LeBron James may seem easy as he is such a high IQ player, known to coach fellow teammates himself. But someone like Russell, who is used to having the limelight to himself and having to carry a squad with his name on it, may have a more difficult time.

Swallowing the fact that he is a secondary player, even if to LeBron, would be hard for a player like Westbrook. Him voicing his disappointment with his playing in the season and going forward changing it reads like a growing maturity that will help ease his move into sixth man.