After the Los Angeles Lakers traded Russell Westbrook to the Utah Jazz on the February 9 deadline, floodgates of controversy seemed to have opened. Various members of the NBA community, including the likes of Shaquille O’Neal, have called out Westbrook’s mistreatment in LA. But now, Lakers superstar LeBron James finds himself at the centre of a bizarre new blame game, tied to one of the NBA’s most recent trade controversies. As fans and analysts alike scramble to make sense of the situation, one NBA star called out James and the Lakers for dragging the 2017 MVP through the mud, amid ‘Vampire’ accuastions.

Recently, Lebron James and his Lakers teammates were implicated in the Russell Westbrook trade saga. The Lakers roster was accused of ‘betrayal’ by an Indiana Pacers guard, who was once touted to be a part of the Lakers in a blockbuster trade, earlier this season.

Patrick Beverley’s revelations and Pacers guard’s comments add fuel to Russell Westbrook-LeBron James controversy

Westbrook, who was traded to Utah after a short stint with the Lakers, has been the subject of criticism from fans and media alike. However, his former teammate Patrick Beverley, who was traded to the Magic before being bought out, had some revelations about their time together on the Lakers. ?Just the vibes were sometimes on, sometimes off. Inconsistent vibes lead to inconsistent play,” Beverley said in his podcast recently, while addressing the situation with the Lakers’ organization.

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Meanwhile, a tweet shared by Sami Hassan has caused quite a stir amongst the fans. The tweet featured a clip from the Indiana Pacers star Buddy Hield‘s post-game interview that seemed to suggest that LeBron James and the Lakers may have mistreated Russell Westbrook, one of their star players. The post read, ?LeBron James & the Lakers dragged Westbrook?s name through the mud. He?s still respected though? Buddy Hield: ?Russell Westbrook. He?s a good dude man. I think people give him a lot of crap. He?s a Hall-of-Famer, I feel like people don?t give him the respect that he deserves.??

“Everybody wants to win a ring but…,” Hield added in the clip, while arguably hinting at the Lakers’ ‘win now’ approach.

This opens new doors for the drama centering the 34-year-old star, after he was called a ‘Vampire’ of the locker room by an ESPN reporter’s source. That incident prompted many to call out the mistreatment of Russ in LA. And now Lakers players, including LeBron James, have been dragged into the whole mess.

Fans divided over Lakers’ treatment of Russell Westbrook

The tweet has sparked a lot of discussion among fans and analysts about the treatment of Westbrook by James and the Lakers. Some are postulating the fact that Westbrook may be struggling on the court due to lack of support from his teammates. However, others have defended James and the Lakers, pointing out that the media has been dragging him, not the players or the organization themselves (at least in the public eye). All the organization said publicly was that the partnership didn’t work out, which was true.?

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