The current Los Angeles Lakers point guard is taking some time to respond to the greatest Los Angeles Lakers point guard.
The Lakers suffered another ugly defeat to the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, losing in a 133-96 thumping. The loss took them back under .500 (21-22).
Magic Johnson expressed his unhappiness about the loss on Twitter, calling out the Lakers for a lack of effort and urgency.
After being blown out by the Nuggets 133-96, we as @Lakers fans can accept being outplayed but we deserve more than a lack of effort and no sense of urgency. Owner @JeanieBuss, you deserve better.
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) January 16, 2022
After the game, Lakers guard Russell Westbrook, who has faced much of the criticism for the team’s struggles, was asked about Johnson’s comments.
“I do not have a reaction,” replied Westbrook, per Ethan Sears of the New York Post. “Everybody is entitled, in this world, to their opinion. Regardless of what that it is. You can either take it and run with it or you can take it and put it in one ear and out the other or you cannot respond to it.
“Magic’s entitled to his opinion,” he added. “He’s not here every day. He’s not around us every day. He’s not aware of what’s going on internally with us and trying to figure things out. But I have no response to that … Like I said, everyone in this world is entitled to their opinion and that’s that.”
The Lakers are currently seventh in the West and would be in the play-in tournament if the season ended today. While Anthony Davis is still out with a knee injury, it has been a massive underperformance for a Lakers team that had championship aspirations heading into the year.
Johnson, a Lakers franchise icon and their former president of basketball operations, has been openly critical of the team throughout the season. But Westbrook essentially seems to be saying that Johnson does not know what he is talking about here.
Photo: Dec 28, 2021; Houston, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Russell Westbrook (0) in action during the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
