“You even got young kids in the league who are disrespecting his name” - 4x NBA champion says Russell Westbrook is being mocked because of all the trade stories, believes criticism has become the norm

Russell Westbrook has come under heavy criticism for his performances in the 2021-22 NBA season. He has become one of the most criticized players in the league, with fans, analysts and players alike pillorying the point-guard.

Westbrook is currently experiencing the longest off-season of his career, having been linked away from the Lakers to multiple franchises. On his podcast with Evan Turner, Point Forward, Andre Iguodala commented on the treatment of Westbrook in the off-season.

He recognized that people are beginning to mock the guard, including the young players in the league. While he presumed it was probably not on purpose, he called out the media for the way they spoke about the players.

"Another person that has fell into this is Russell Westbrook," Iguodala said. "This is the same conversation. Any and every Russ trade has been leaked and he still hasn't been traded. It's become, people starting to mocking Russ, you even got young kids in the league who are disrespecting by his name. It's probably not on purpose like that's just how it came up, because we just accepted the way the media speaks and throws shots at our players."

Russell Westbrook on his way out of the LA Lakers

Russell Westbrook of the Los Angeles Lakers brings up the ball during a 126-121 Philadelphia 76ers win at Crypto.com Arena on March 23, 2022 in Los Angeles, California.

It's been a year since Westbrook made his fairytale move to the LA Lakers from the Washington Wizards. In his campaign with the Lakers, he has seemingly underperformed.

The Lakers have expressed their intention to trade the all-time triple-double leader in a possible bid to acquire Kyrie Irving. However, the trade has reportedly stalled with the Brooklyn Nets not interested in acquiring Westbrook.

According to Shams Charania, sports reporter for The Athletic, new prospects have emerged who are vying to acquire the two-time scoring champion. The Utah Jazz, New York Knicks, and the Indiana Pacers are possible next destinations for Westbrook. Wherever he may go, Westbrook will look to recapture his former glory at Oklahoma a few years ago, when he led OKC year-after-year to the postseason and even became the league-MVP in 2017.

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