Video: Does Westbrook's Place in History Say More About him or the Thunder
Russell Westbrook's place in NBA history is complicated. In one respect, he is a statistical dynamo who accomplished the feat of averaging a triple-double in three straight years.
In another respect, Westbrook is a mercurial figure, who while setting historical benchmarks, did so at the expense of his team. The second statement is the low hanging fruit host like Colin Cowherd goes to when they are looking to fill airtime on a slow day.
In ESPN's ranking of the 74 best players in association history, Westbrook is 42nd sandwiched in between Bob Cousy and Rick Barry. Some of Westbrook's detractors are unnerved by this for several reasons, and one of those is his lack of rings.
When Westbrook gets criticized for not having a won championship, are we dissecting his inability to get his teammates on the same page the way Michael Jordan did or the Thunder for not putting better players around him? Even Jordan admits he needed Scottie Pippen to help him hang banners, so that puts the onus on Sam Presti.
Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated points out that during his time in Oklahoma City, Westbrook ran into some rotten luck." The argument against Westbrook's greatness is the lack of a championship, but you have to look at the context of that."
"Do we fault Westbrook for Oklahoma City getting creamed by Miami in 2012? That Heat team was formed while the Thunder were a bunch of baby-faced kids just getting warmed up."... "How about 2014, when OKC played without Serge Ibaka in the conference finals against eventual champion San Antonio?"
"The only real blemish on Westbrook's playoff resume is in 2016 when he was part of a Thunder team that blew a 3-2 series lead to Golden State."... "But this is why championships are overvalued when debating a player's place in NBA history. You put one title on Westbrook's resume, and he probably jumps 50 spots on most lists."
Chris, I hate to bring this up, but it was a 3-1 series lead in the Western Conference Finals vs. Golden State, and he did go 17 of 48 in games six and seven of that series. Still, Kevin Durant could have picked up the slack; Durant went 20 of 50 in those two games and one of eight from beyond the arc in game six.
If there is any crime, Westbrook committed it was signing the five-year super-max contract that paid him over $200,000,000, eating up 35 percent of the Thunder's cap space. While Presti was able to make trades for Carmelo Anthony and Paul Geroge, Westbrook's salary, along with George's and Antony's limited the depth coming off the bench.
Agin, not Westbrook's fault, who in their right mind, turns down that kind of money, and it's not his responsibility to build the roster. If you want to take away from a hall of fame career, pile on the Thunder and Presti for not being able to talk Russ into accepting less.
Or, you can be reasonable, and understand he was the only reason the Thunder made the playoffs the year after Durant left and kept Oklahoma City relevant for the two years to follow. While it's not Kobe Bryant or Jordan's career, it's still mind-blowing from a statistical standpoint, and there is still time for Westbrook to get that elusive championship.
Westbrook's story is far from over.
