Lakers Russell Westbrook Addresses Criticism Following L.A.'s Fifth Straight Loss

After the Laker's Christmas day loss, many began pointing fingers directly at Russell Westbrook. Not only were some criticizing Westbrook for his performance, but also stating that L.A. needs to trade him because of his pattern this season. Many are trying to preach to the Lakers to find a way to get Russell Westbrook off the team, but it does not look like that is in the near future. Westbrook has made it clear that he is not listening to what other people have to say and that he is going to continue to focus on the things that he can control, including his effort.

On Monday, Westbrook spoke with the media after practice and talked about how he is feeling following the embarrassing Christmas day loss.

"There will be nights when you don't make shots, but like for me, my game is not predicated if I miss and make shots," said Westbrook.

"I do other things to impact, one to impact the game, so at nights when I don't make shots or miss shots, I do other things to impact and let my team win and that's how I look at it, simple as that. Keep my head up and keep moving like I've always done."

Westbrook continued and talked about others' expectations for him each time he is out on the court.

"The conversation has been heavily on how I'm playing and what I'm doing, but I think people are expecting me to have f---ing 25, 15, and 15, which, that is not normal. Everybody has to understand, like, that's not a normal thing that people do consistently."

Russell Westbrook is an incredibly talented athlete. He has been breaking records for years now. This is not new information to anyone. However, he is the highest-paid player on the Lakers, which means that expectations are going to be high. That does not mean that Westbrook needs to go above and beyond every person's expectation of him, it means that he needs to be able to make shots. Even though Westbrook does not think that he is defined by how many shots he makes, it does matter because of how it affects the entire team. It is not the end of the world to miss, but Westbrook shot 4-for-20 against the Nets. Nonetheless, he can bounce back from this.

The criticism comes from the expectation for L.A. to win. The Lakers are capable of so much more than what they are producing. They will not be able to survive the rest of the season if they cannot score. As the Lakers prepare to play back-to-back games this week, we will see if the frustration that Westbrook is feeling can translate to a better effort.