Russell Westbrook was concerned about the Rockets’ laid back culture during his one-year stint

Washington Wizards guard Russell Westbrook was not pleased with some of the things he experience while with the Houston Rockets last season, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.

In MacMahon’s column, the culture in Houston catered to James Harden’s whims. Among other things, he got excused absences for being late from practice. And he would often have a quick jet trip to Las Vegas or another city he wanted to party in... That apparently didn’t sit well with Westbrook who was well-known for being major part of an Oklahoma City Thunder team with more structure.

While Harden also spent his early years (2009-12) with the Thunder, he was also a sixth man there. That was largely because Westbrook and Kevin Durant were already the first established stars there by the time he arrived. But today, Harden is better known for being the 2017-18 NBA Most Valuable Player and being the face of the Rockets at this point.

Considering all of the drama that happened in Houston over the past several weeks, it shouldn’t be that much of a surprise that Westbrook requested a trade out of there and is now in Washington. It’s unfortunate that John Wall had to be traded in the process, but it will be interesting to see how he meshes, if at all with Harden and the team culture they apparently had for some time.