Russell Westbrook: The Ultimate Distributor
By Shawn Woods
Apr 15, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard
Russell Westbrook(0) dribbles the ball in the second quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
Russell Westbrook is one of the most dynamic players in the NBA. He’s a top-10 player in the league by almost any rating system, and he carried the Thunder through their injury riddled season to a near playoff finish. In 67 games, Westbrook averaged 28 points (a league high), 8 assists and 7 rebounds with a 53.6 true shooting percentage, including a 20-game stretch where those averages climbed to 31, 11 and 9. Westbrook maintained his efficiency with the second-highest usage percentage in history and without the MVP by his side.
He still has some room for improvement.
I don’t think Westbrook could have done more last season, but with the tools at his disposal and a coach that could harness his skills in a way the previous one couldn’t, there is a chance we haven’t seen the best of Westbrook.
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For the purpose of this post, I’ll only discuss Westbrook’s passing. The graphs will show the number of assists based on what the immediate action was before Westbrook was credited with the assist during the 20-game stretch I mentioned earlier. Most of them should be self-explanatory, but I’ll quickly explain a few.
DHO stands for dribble hand off, which is when a player curls around Westbrook and Westbrook hands the ball to the player. A “Kobe Assist” is when Westbrook shoots an airball and a teammate rebounds it for an easy two points. PNR stands for pick-and-roll, and a PNR “away” means Westbrook went the opposite way that the screen was being set.
With that said, I’ll take a look at Westbrook’s assists from the streak.
Next: Type of Assists