NBA Twitter Criticizes Russell Westbrook's Play off Bench for Lakers vs. Timberwolves

The Los Angeles Lakers dropped to 0-5 on the season following a 111-102 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night at Target Center, and the Purple and Gold arguably look worse than they did in 2021-22, when they finished 11th in the Western Conference.

With Anthony Davis out of the lineup against the Timberwolves because of a back injury, it was up to LeBron James to carry the team. Although he finished with 28 points, seven rebounds, five assists and four steals, his efforts weren't enough, as the only other players to hit double digits in scoring were Russell Westbrook, Troy Brown Jr. and Austin Reaves.

Westbrook, L.A.'s $47.1 million man, finished with 18 points, eight rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block in 33 minutes off the bench. He made just six of 17 shots from the floor and one of four shots from deep.

Following yet another inefficient night from the point guard, NBA Twitter took aim at Westbrook:

The Lakers are one of two teams to still be without a win this season, joining the 0-4 Sacramento Kings.

At this point, trading Westbrook probably wouldn't help the team enough to vault it into title contention, especially considering L.A. likely won't get much in return to make packaging their 2027 and 2029 first-round picks in a deal worth it.

The Purple and Gold could very well ride the season out with the current group they have. If that happens, it's going to be a long season for fans.