On March 6, Beijing time, according to the famous Wanaroski report, sources revealed that more and more people in the Lakers hope that Wei Shao will change to play as a substitute, but so far, Vogel still rejects this proposal.
On how to use the 2017 MVP, the Lakers coaching staff and Wei Shao himself have different views. Warnaroski broke the news that there was friction between Vogel and Westbrook during the team video lesson on Saturday (Beijing time).
The growing frustration has plunged the Lakers into a free-fall season. Before the Game against the Warriors, the Lakers lost 11 of their last 14 games, including a four-game losing streak since All-Star Weekend. They are ninth in the West but are only 0.5 wins ahead of the Pelicans behind them.
Westbrook has been unable to adapt to the team, averaging 18.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game, and in the four games after All-Star Weekend, the average score per game has dropped to 15.8 points, and the shooting rate has been worse.
Vogel insists Westbrook still has a chance to bounce back at the end of the season, as he did with the Wizards a season ago. Regarding whether Westbrook will play as a substitute, Vogel has repeatedly stated that he has discussed the matter with the team, but quickly said that it is not yet at that stage.
But there is not much time left for the Lakers. Westbrook has shot less than 30 percent from three-point range for the fourth time in five seasons and is currently scoring under 20 points in 10 consecutive games, just his longest record since 2009. In the 2022-23 season, Westbrook's contract has $47 million in player options, after Stein reported that both Lakers and Westbrook were interested in ending their partnership, but it was not easy to implement.