NBA – Former player Lou Williams gets angry: “Imagine if the Lakers had done that to Kobe”

Par Joël Pütz | Journaliste sportif

Second in the Western Conference this season, the Rockets were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. This has earned them a lot of criticism from one of their main stars, but Lou Williams has been fiercely defending him recently.

Who could have imagined this outcome? Few would have thought the Rockets would be this good in the 2024-25 regular season. Facing stiff competition in the Western Conference, coach Ime Udoka’s men had climbed to second place, just behind Oklahoma City. But the Texans had their work cut out in the first round, where they had to do battle with the Warriors.

And unfortunately for them, their season came to an end at the end of a highly contested series, which Stephen Curry and co. won after seven games. Trailing 3-1 for a time, Jalen Green and his teammates fought back, but it ultimately wasn’t enough. That aside, the former no.4 draft pick’s playoff debut has been very complicated, with the guard hardly rising to the occasion.

Lou Williams defends Jalen Green after playoffs struggles

Averaging just 13.3 points at a 37.2% shooting rate, the former Team Ignite player has cracked under pressure, earning him plenty of admonishment from the fans. However, Lou Williams recently disagreed, the former Sixth Man saying that everything shouldn’t be thrown away when it comes to Jalen Green. He used a very good example on FanDuel TV:

I’ve heard the talks about them moving him. Only way you consider moving a guy like Jalen Green is if you have a real chance at going and getting a Ja Morant or a Kevin Durant. One of these guys that are an obvious franchise changers. Other than that, you stay put. You hold your cards where you are.

You have a nice, young nucleus. Granted, he did struggle in these playoffs, but it was his first introduction. Imagine if the Lakers turned their backs on Kobe when he played how he played against the Utah Jazz when he was such a young player… It’s not a lot of Jalen Green’s laying around.

As a reminder, Kobe’s post-season debut was a disaster, particularly in Game 7 against the Jazz in the second round of the playoffs. Still a rookie and fresh out of high school, the Mamba was guilty of several poor late-game choices, resulting in no less than four air balls. This didn’t stop the franchise from continuing to trust him… and we all know what happened next.