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Top 5 Point Guard Rankings: Russell Westbrook

By SaintClair Edmunds III

May 26, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) is defended by Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) in the fourth quarter in game five of the Western conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Oracle Arena. The Warriors won 120-111. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
May 26, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) is defended by Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) in the fourth quarter in game five of the Western conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Oracle Arena. The Warriors won 120-111. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Russell Westbrook vs Chris Paul

Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /

Now this is a much harder comparison. Both point guards play wildly different from one another. Chris Paul plays more in the realm of a traditional point guard. Running the offense first, setting up teammates second, and scoring last. Chris Paul plays with great patience and doesn’t force the pace of the game.

Also, Chris Paul shot a better percentage from the field and 3-point range than Westbrook. Paul averaged 10 assists compared to Westbrook’s 10.4. Again, similar to John Wall, this is impressive because Chris Paul lost his second best player for most of the season in Blake Griffin. Even more impressive, Chris Paul still lead them to a 4th seed, while Westbrook didn’t even make the playoffs when Durant went down in the spring of 2015.

Due to style of play, many consider Chris Paul the more efficient point guard.

Chris Paul had an offensive ranking of 10th at 119.2 while Westbrook’s was 20th at 115.5 last season.

When it comes to win shares per 48 minutes Chris Paul is slightly above Westbrook ranking 4th to Westbrook’s 5th. But, this doesn’t plaint the entire picture because Westbrook played with Durant who was ranked 3rd. So, determining how many wins were attributed to Westbrook vs Durant isn’t clear.

However, Westbrook had the higher player efficiency rating than Paul. As a matter of fact Westbrook ranked 3rd at 27.6, which may surprise a lot of people. Chris Paul ranked 5th at 26.2 so not far behind.

Next: Westbrook vs Kyrie

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