Clippers' Paul George Says Russell Westbrook 'Just Wasn't Comfortable' on the Lakers

Paul George doesn't believe Los Angeles Clippers teammate Russell Westbrook ever found a true comfort zone during his ill-fated spell with the Los Angeles Lakers.

"I saw he just wasn't comfortable when he was with the Lakers," George said to The Athletic's Law Murray. "You could just see it on him that there's so many battles he was fighting. And so I was the first to defend him. I knew that wasn't the finished product of what Russ is. I knew he had a lot more basketball in him, and I knew he could help us."

Westbrook joined the Lakers to great fanfare ahead of the 2021-22 NBA season. The Long Beach, California, native and former UCLA star was coming home to help LeBron James and Anthony Davis bring the franchise an 18th title.

A year-and-a-half later, the nine-time All-Star was unceremoniously dealt to the Utah Jazz, who subsequently waived him.

Westbrook failed to mesh with James and Davis on the court or adapt to a role off the ball. He was also a convenient scapegoat for a team that was falling short of expectations. ESPN's Dave McMenamin famously reported a source described his departure as "[removing] a vampire from the locker room," which was quite the characterization.

The 34-year-old's time with the Clippers has presented a stark contrast.

Through 25 appearances with L.A.'s other team, he's averaging 15.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 7.5 assists. Most impressively, he has shot 35.3 percent from beyond the arc, well above his career average (30.5 percent).

Westbrook reflected to Murray how "Paul and [Kawhi Leonard] and everybody else around here allows me to be able to play my position and try to make the game easy for them."

"Honestly, it's as simple as that for me and being able to do that since I've been here has made me most comfortable where I'm supposed to be," he said.

NBA fans know the version of Westbrook who averaged a triple-double in four seasons and won an MVP is never coming back. But when his spell with the Lakers came to an end, some wondered whether his days as an effective contributor in any form were numbered.

To this point, he has proven his skeptics wrong while suiting up for the Clippers.