Thunderous Thoughts: Russell Westbrook is THE guy
Welcome to Thunderous Thoughts, a weekly look at the Oklahoma City Thunder with the main story ranging from something I wrote sober to something I wrote on a bunch of NyQuil. This week, more Russell Westbrook praise.
When Russell Westbrook re-signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder on August 4, he was supposed to be the hero. Despite his brash attitude and alleged “me first” ways, Westbrook stayed. He could have cut and run with that other guy. No one would have blamed him. He had one year left on his contract, why stay on a small market team that wasn’t quite ready to compete? Los Angeles and New York weren’t better situations, but they would fit with Westbrook’s personality far more than Oklahoma City.
The mood changed in Oklahoma City. There was a celebration. A homecoming of sorts for a guy who never left. The guy we all thought would stay, left. And the guy we all thought would leave, stayed. It didn’t matter that the regular season and first three rounds of the playoffs became meaningless on July 4th. Westbrook was going to get to be Westbrook for the first time ever. He proved his loyalty, and he was got the keys to the kingdom.
Related: Durant didn’t leave because of Russell Westbrook
So why has everyone turned against Russell Westbrook?
It didn’t take long. The second game of the season, actually, when Westbrook had 51 points on 44 shots. Everyone turned. The “selfish” label was reapplied. The “this is why KD left” rumors started coming. It progressively got worse. His triple-doubles were criticized because he was stat-padding. The Thunder weren’t beating good teams. None of it was sustainable.
MUST READ: Colin Cowherd makes egregious comment
He’s still stat padding, the Thunder are beating good and bad teams (mainly bad teams, but they have some nice wins), and he’s average a triple-double heading into the All-Star break.
Westbrook will come off the bench on Sunday. He may see time alongside four Warriors All-Stars. He’ll probably refuse to pass them the ball and everyone will lament him for it. He’ll probably take 20 threes and people will criticize him for shooting too much in an All-Star game. Westbrook will most likely be the villain on Saturday, because that’s the role he always played alongside that one dude.
Russell Westbrook is not the villain. He’s not a good guy, he’s not a bad guy, he’s THE guy in OKC. They would be a bottom five team without him. His triple-doubles lead to victories, so why are they a problem? Yes, he shoots too much. Yes, he makes bad decisions. It’s part of his maddening charm. And isn’t that what we wanted to start the season? Weren’t we all rooting for Westbrook to put up video game numbers? The fact that Westbrook has done that, and kept the Thunder in the playoff mix, should garner him all of the praise.
Other Thunder Thoughts
*If that was Cameron Payne‘s last game in an OKC uniform, what a way to go.
More from Thunderous Intentions
- Stealing one player from every Southwest Division team for the OKC Thunder
- Should the OKC Thunder chase after a disgruntled hometown hero?
- 3 OKC Thunder players who can step up in Aleksej Pokusevski’s absence
- Aleksej Pokusevski sidelined approximately 6 weeks with ankle injury
- Damian Lillard does not fit with the OKC Thunder
*Steven Adams is so good at just holding guys in the paint in order to clear the lane. I’m fairly certain it’s not legal, but he deserves credit for how often he does it and gets away with it.
*Trade season is my favorite season.
RELATED: Revisiting the Reggie Jackson trade
*Mario Hezonja. That’s the name I’m floating for OKC. He’s a bit off the radar, on a controllable contract, an international guy, and can shoot the ball. It’s not a big splash like fans are hoping for, but it could turn into a solid pick-up if he develops.
*Am I starting to trust Westbrook in the clutch? It seemed impossible that Thunder fans would be able to do such a thing at the start of the season. But there’s enough evidence to prove that he’s good in the clutch, right?