Did Sacramento Kings coach Doug Christie take the side of Westbrook or the local media after his fiery Thursday rant?
Russell Westbrook arrived in a fiery mood after taking the New Orleans Pelicans loss. But took it out on the media covering the Sacramento Kings instead by calling out "false narratives" about his team.
Where does coach Doug Christie stand in all this, though? And did he take the side of Russ or did Christie come to the defense of the local media?
Christie addressed that topic first before diving in to the 133-123 loss. While he began by stating how Westbrook "played hard and competed at a high level" and raved about the energy he brings, he later shared if he overheard Westbrook's rant.
"No, I didn't hear it," Christie stated. "But we're all frustrated."
Christie continued to elaborate, indicating where he does see Westbrook's perspective.
"We want to win games. And to get into more context, we're in the game and we're right there. And then there's these short stints where you drop a rope and you don't box out, or allow second chance points, or don't close out with your hand down," Christie said. "He's frustrated, and I'm actually OK with that. Because that just shows that he cares about what he's doing."
But Christie later said he doesn't ken to what's written or said about how his Kings are being covered in the media.
"I'm going to be quite honest with y'all: I don't read much into what you guys write," he explained. "I don't mean any disrespect. My focus is on what I've got to focus on."
He later shared how he could careless with how he's viewed in the public lens outside of the Kings' facility.
"You guys can hate me, like me, or don't like what I'm doing. But I'm going to do what I do with this team and give them a fresh perspective and a positive mindset," Christie said. "I respect how you guys go about your business, but I don't read it."
Christie has faced hefty criticism for how he's coached the Kings. Including from members of the media ripping the way he goes about his gameday rotations.
It doesn't help his team has lost 50 games already -- the first to hit that mark this season. Sacramento continues to hear chatter about landing the top pick of the NBA Draft come June. But now may not land Caleb Wilson of North Carolina or even projected top pick AJ Dybantsa of BYU; the latter teasing skipping the draft and returning for his sophomore season.
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