When NBA star Kyrie Irving was traded to the Dallas Mavericks, there was probably no one who was as disappointed as LeBron James. Given the poor performance of the Los Angeles Lakers throughout the season, acquiring Irving would have helped LeBron in a significant way. The Lakers are currently the No. 13 seed and have little to no chance of making it to the playoffs. However, the trade with the Nets never took place. Although, James’ reaction towards it sure did rub fellow Lakers teammate Russell Westbrook‘s family in a wrong way.
During a recent interview, LeBron James shared that he was disappointed not to have the chance to reunite with his former teammate. The 19x NBA All-Star shared he had great on-court chemistry with Kyrie Irving. Furthermore, he also added that the former Cleveland Cavaliers star could have helped them win the championship.
LeBron James and the Lakers upset the Westbrook family
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Not just LeBron James but the Los Angeles Lakers, too, wanted to acquire Kyrie Irving to build a more robust roster. However, certain conditions and demands made it harder for the franchise to acquire the 2016 NBA champion. Amidst all that, Russell Westbrook’s brother, Ray Westbrook, hinted at his displeasure toward LeBron and the Lakers through a series of not-so-subtle posts and comments. While millions of sports fans were celebrating King James for becoming the All-Time scoring leader, Ray shared a post dedicated to Russ for hitting 9000 assists.
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 https://t.co/PqJ52FDyTs
— ray westbrook (@whynotraywest) February 8, 2023
Ray retweeted the post with the fire emoji and the caption read, “Russ also hit 9,000 assists tonight I hope that can get acknowledged tonight as well. 10th player in history to do so.”
Ray also liked a tweet by another NBA fan who believed that Westbrook was disrespected by the fans and the Lakers franchise. Below are a few more of the fan tweets liked by Russ’ brother.
Russell Westbrook has been DISRESPECTED by the fans, coaches, and front office as a whole and STILL continues to give the Lakers everything he has on a NIGHTLY basis. A TRUE professional.
— Joy De’Angela (@joydeangela) February 5, 2023
FreeRuss🙏🏾
— Reggie Morris (@ClassicReg) February 9, 2023
Very happy @russwest44 played for @Lakers . It was a rough start, but you are a major reason lakers are in position to make noise in the playoffs . Your leadership came through in the end and your game spoke volumes . Continue being great #whynot #greatfamilyman
— Metta (@MettaWorld37) February 9, 2023
When have any of these antics the past week been respectable or acceptable from teammates and coaches?
— Noah (@__Rajaa) February 6, 2023
Russ is making everything so easy for AD and Bron. Let the PG play PG
— JDJackson (@Alwaysn4evaArt) February 1, 2023
Y’all hate Russ so much you won’t pos this one though pic.twitter.com/qq8fmGIhuP
— َ (@BolWrld) January 30, 2023
Real ones always know. https://t.co/MIMu487YpO
— Cecil Williams (@cwillpoetry) January 30, 2023
Y’all be acting like Russ is the root of all evil or something it’s weird.
— Cecil Williams (@cwillpoetry) January 26, 2023
Y’all weird man. When Russ contributes, y’all don’t say anything. But when he’s playing ass y’all Twitter fingers go crazy
— DreLakerNation2408 (@EarlyDreDay) January 13, 2023
Don't let that ball denial on Luka by Russell Westbrook go unnoticed.
— JDJackson (@Alwaysn4evaArt) January 13, 2023
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Why is Ray upset with LeBron and the Lakers?
Lately, NBA point guard Russell Westbrook’s brother and fans have been upset with LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers due to the Kyrie Irving trade deal. Both James and the franchise were interested in adding Irving to the roster. However, to make an appealing offer, they would have had to include Westbrook in the deal. Moreover, the Lakers have been trying to trade Russ for the past few weeks.
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WATCH THIS STORY: LeBron James chucks aside Lakers trade questions with 5 words
Things got worse when LeBron expressed his disappointment in failing to land Irving prompting fans to treat his reaction as a massive disrespect to Russ.