Westbrook kept his word.
The Los Angeles Lakers won 122-121 in a home game against the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2022-2023 NBA regular season held at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California on the 21st (Korean time). With the win, the Lakers broke Memphis’ 12-game winning streak. The Lakers led the way with LeBron James’ 23 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists, and Russell Westbrook’s 29 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds.
It was a fierce fight. The two teams, which had been closely contested throughout the game, could not predict the outcome until the end of the fourth quarter. The Lakers trailed 115-118, and Westbrook’s layup shot succeeded 24 seconds before the end, and pursued with a 117-118, one-point lead.
In the ensuing Memphis attack, the Lakers attempted steals with a double team instead of foul operations, and Dennis Schroeder got a foul after stealing, leading 122-120. Morant’s last attack was blocked by Westbrook, but in the situation of a rebound, Brandon Clark fouled out two free throws and faced the last crisis. The Lakers won a thrilling one-point victory with Clark only making one free throw.
The main contributor to the victory was, of course, Westbrook. He was responsible for 29 points, the most on the team, and was very active in both offense and defense, blocking Morant’s last attack. An interesting scene is that Morant’s last attack was defended by Westbrook. The Lakers had a good defender named Patrick Beverly. But the player who stopped Morant was Westbrook.
Reporters also asked Davin Hamm about this in a post-match interview. Coach Davin Hamm said, “Westbrook asked me to take over Morant’s defense, and I did.” “I know I’m a great defender and I have the ability to stop anyone,” Westbrook said. The player perfectly reciprocated the coach’s trust.
The team that stopped Memphis, who had been on an 11-game winning streak until the game, was none other than the Lakers without Anthony Davis. The Lakers team is expected to gain great confidence with this victory. 슬롯사이트
Westbrook, who escaped from the worst sluggishness seen at the beginning of the season, is great. Westbrook has made a complete comeback, averaging 24 points, 7.1 rebounds and 7.5 assists in the last 7 games. The Lakers, with Lebron steady and Westbrook resurrected, are opponents that can never be taken lightly. If Davis returns from injury, he could emerge as a dark horse in the Western Conference.