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Kendrick Perkins Takes Shot At LeBron James And Anthony Davis For Not Defending Their Coach: “Vogel Being The Scapegoat Is Ridiculous”

The Los Angeles Lakers are having a pretty rough season so far, and currently only have a 22-23 record  which got them sitting as the eighth seed in the Western Conference.

Certainly not what the team, that started the season as one of the NBA’s top contenders, expected. While there are many different explanations for the Lakers’ struggles, LeBron James’ play certainly isn’t one of them. In Year 19, the four-time MVP still plays like he’s in the middle of his prime and carries his team night in and night out.

One of the team’s problems though is the play of All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook. 

Ever since Westbrook was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, there have been concerns about how Westbrook would fit in their rotation, considering his nagging issues on the offensive end, as well as playing alongside LeBron James who shares a similar role as him in terms of being a lead ball-handler.

Then, during last night’s loss to the Indiana Pacers, Lakers head coach Frank Vogel left Westbrook on the bench for the final four minutes of action, because he wanted to play the guys he believed could win the game, as he later admitted.

But Westbrook isn’t the only one sitting on a hot chair. Vogel, who coached the Lakers to the 2020 NBA Championship, himself is on the verge of being fired. According to a report by The Athletic, “Vogel is being evaluated on a game-to-game basis and remains at risk of being fired soon if the progress doesn’t continue”.

This led to LeBron James’ former teammate Kendrick Perkins, who’s an analyst for ESPN these days, come on to First Take to say that he doesn’t think Vogel is to blame, as he isn’t the reason the Lakers are in such a difficult position. Moreover, Perkins says that Vogel simply is the scapegoat and he wants LeBron or Anthony Davis to come out and defend their coach.