Los Angeles Lakers coach Darvin Ham says he and Russell Westbrook have moved on and have an understanding after the point guard suggested Ham's decision to bring him off the bench in the preseason may have contributed to a minor injury he suffered.
There was an insinuation that the Lakers' preseason finale loss to the Kings had something to do with the physical setbacks that took place after the game.
Before his team played the LA Clippers on Thursday, Ham said "let me be clear with this." We wouldn't shape or form the Lakers to put a player or employee in harm's way. Mental, physical, and spiritual. We don't think that's right. We aren't interested in that. That isn't who we are.
Following the Lakers' 123-109 season- opening loss to the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday, Westbrook said he believes that coming off the bench against the Kings could have caused the injury.
He started 1,005 out of 1,022 games in his career. I had no idea what to do before. I was trying to find a way to stay warm.
The two talked about the comments. In the two games against the Warriors and Clippers, Ham went back to the same lineup as before.
We got an understanding and moved on. We're going to do what's best for our team to be as successful as possible. I will just leave it at that.
"respect" and "routine" are important to the former league's Most Valuable Player, but he will have to meet team goals in order to do so.
He's been around a while. He's been playing at a high level for a long time. I know what that is and how it is. You have to be ready to do whatever your team needs you to do. Being a professional is what it is. If we choose to use him, there needs to be a willingness to sacrifice for your teammates and the overall good of the team.
In 31 minutes against Golden State, he had 19 points on 7-for-12 shooting, 11rpg, 3 assists, 1 steal and 4 turnovers.
"Based on performance, minutes can go up, minutes can go down," he said.
Even if their comments were construed as critiques of the coaching staff, Ham said he didn't have a problem with them saying what they wanted to say.
Ham said it was a grown man's league. Whether it's directed at someone or not, things are going to say. I handle it in a way that works for me. For the past 26 years, I've been here. I have been on quiet teams and loud teams. I have admiration for those guys. They have great respect for me. Nothing personal is taken about anything. We deal with it and move on.
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