Fresh off missing his first game as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, Russell Westbrook spoke to the media on Friday regarding the back tightness that reportedly forced him to miss Wednesday’s loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Russ attributed his recent back issues to the extended time he has spent on the bench this season.
“I’m not accustomed to sitting down for long stretches and getting up and then moving quickly,” he said. “It kind of stiffens up a little bit, and then kind of moving into the next night, I woke up, same thing, just kind of real stiff.”
On Wednesday, less than 24 hours before the NBA’s trade deadline, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski broke the news that Westbrook would miss the Portland game due to back tightness, adding that the polarizing point guard “felt the same tightness in his back on Tuesday night vs. Milwaukee, but played through it.”
Given the timing, some fans were convinced that the Lakers were actually benching Russ while they tried to move him before the deadline. Considering Thursday’s deadline passed with Westbrook still in L.A., only time will tell if his back issues are in fact an injury that will keep him out for the foreseeable future.
