OKC Set To Be Russell Westbrook’s Team
It’s doubtful they can co-exist in the future with Westbrook’s latest explosion.
Again, I will not stop talking about the Russell Westbrook until his astonishing, mindblowing stats give me a reason to do so. I’ve covered his mvp campaign and signature shoe, but it’s now time to focus on the future with the Oklahoma City Thunder and his partner in crime (whom surprisingly I haven’t mentioned once in this trilogy of Westbrook pieces) Kevin Durant.
The Dynamic Between Russ and KD
Since Russell Westbrook stepped foot in the league in 2008, he has long lived in the 6 foot 11 inch shadow that is Kevin Durant. He has been consistently ridiculed and harassed in the media for taking the big shot (and coming up short) instead of handing it off to the team’s number one option in KD.
It’s no wonder why it seems like Westbrook has been licking at the chops for a moment like this, where Durant is out for a considerable amount of time making him the go-to guy. And boy has he showed up big for the new look Thunder, averaging 40.7 ppg 11.3 apg 11.3 rpg 3 spg in one week alone, and mentioned in the same breath as the GOAT, Michael Jordan. But the main question here is…what will happen when the reigning MVP, Kevin Durant comes back?
Future For OKC Organization
With Durant stating that he will be back in time before the playoffs 100% to get some regular season games in, it raises a lot of question marks as to what the offense, or should I say who the offense will be centered around. Granted Kevin Durant is the reigning MVP, but you simply can’t deny Russell Westbrook’s tear he has been on.
In an article released by ESPN, former NBA executive and NBA analyst, Tom Penn believes that more likely than not OKC will be looking to move Kevin Durant next year stating, “I think this burst from Westbrook makes it much more likely that Durant ultimately gets traded next year. … Sam Presti has proven that he does not ever want to lose anybody for nothing. So he traded James Harden a year early to avoid a potential luxury tax problem a year later.”
Although KD’s contract is up at the end of 2016, we all assumed that Sam Presti would do anything in his power to keep the MVP in a Thunder uniform. But with the resurgence of Wesbrook and the Thunder as a whole, it could lead him to make some impactful decisions that may be for the better of the franchise.
Trading Durant while and getting something huge out of it rather then having him let go due to free agency makes sense. After all, we know how much D.C wants him.
