Lakers assistant coach Phil Handy reacted to the viral clip of his argument with Russell Westbrook during their game against the Houston Rockets.
Considering the high stakes involved, tensions tend to be fairly high during an NBA game, and at times during the heat of battle, we get some tense exchanges on the court. We got to see one on Monday night when the Los Angeles Lakers took on the Houston Rockets.
The Lakers were up 73-61 entering halftime, but Russell Westbrook was not happy about something. He got on their coaching staff, saying that they have to be better and he had to be spoken to by LeBron James and Phil Handy. Westbrook's exchange with Handy went viral and the Lakers assistant coach responded to the clip afterward.
Phill Handy: "Guess you had to be there. If you know anything about me as a coach I always keep it 100. Regardless of the name on the jersey. Self-reflection is always the key and we can all be better."
You want coaches to treat everybody the same and Handy goes by that mantra. It doesn't matter to him that Westbrook is a former MVP, he was going to do what he felt was right in that situation. The Lakers ended up getting the win and Westbrook had a pretty good game too, but it seems his future remains up in the air.
Lakers Are Still Looking To Trade Russell Westbrook
Westbrook has been giving the Lakers some great production off the bench this season and is seen as the frontrunner for Sixth Man of the Year. Despite his good play, reports emerged that the team has concerns about his fit with the roster, especially in the postseason when rotations shorten.
A Western Conference executive stated that the Lakers are still pursuing trades for Westbrook as they look to cash in when this value is high. We are looking at a situation now where they might not have to give up draft picks to trade him away, which seemed impossible just a few months back. Russ won't be bothered by these reports too much though as he has been dealing with this for a while now and his focus will be on their next game against the Sacramento Kings.
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