Russell Westbrook in midst of brutal personal losing streak

Westbrook was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Utah Jazz on Feb. 9, spent four games with the team (all DNPs) and then reached an agreement on a contract buyout before signing with the Clippers on Feb. 22. The former MVP immediately joined L.A.'s starting five in his first game last week, but his new squad has lost four in a row since he came aboard.

Westbrook has started all four games since joining the Clippers, averaging 14 points, while pitching in a very solid 8.5 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 1.8 steals per contest across 30 minutes per game. He's been a turnover machine though, averaging 4.3 per game, and his shooting struggles have continued, going 21-for-46 from the field and 4-for-14 from beyond the arc.

Prior to signing with Tyronn Lue's club, Westbrook hadn't started a game in nearly four months, taking the floor for the opening tip in each of the Lakers' first three contests this season (all losses). The other seven defeats during games he started came in the 2021-2022 regular season, as part of the Lakers' late-March and early-April eight-game losing streak.

The last time Westbrook's team won a game that he started was when the Lakers defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 131-120 on March 21, 2022.

Both the Clippers (33-32) and Lakers (30-33) are in trouble of not qualifying for this spring's play-in tournament, despite having the likes of Westbrook, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, LeBron James and Anthony Davis on their rosters. As the regular season enters the stretch run though, there's still a lot of clustering in the conference standings, and it may take a while to learn how the West will be won.