As the face of the OKC Thunder, Russell Westbrook is known for taking over games. But with the team hitting its stride, he’s easing into a different role.
Regardless of your opinion on Russell Westbrook, there’s no debating he’s the reason the OKC Thunder managed to stay relevant in recent years. He practically carried the entire team to the playoffs when he won MVP in 2016-17 and he was a big reason why we landed Paul George just before the 2017-18 season.
For better or worse, the Thunder have lived and died by the sword, needing a heroic performance from Westbrook every night. And even though his stat lines have been historic, plenty of critics continue to take shots at him.
Billy Donovan on Westbrook's 3's down the stretch: "I'm sure like any guy on our team, there's gonna be shots you wish you could have back and take different(ly). Some of the threes were good, and to be honest with you, some of them were not good."
— Erik Horne (@ErikkHorne) November 25, 2018
The arguments against Westbrook makes sense when he is off and the Thunder are losing. At the same time, it’s hard to blame him for doing everything he can since OKC’s bench has been one of the least productive offensively prior to this season. But now with the team playing well collectively, Russ appears to be playing more off ball and trusting his teammates more so far this season.
In addition to allowing George and Dennis Schroder to control the offense, Westbrook has been taking fewer shots (again, so far) than in the last two seasons. Perhaps it was winning five of six games after rolling his ankle against New Orleans, but regardless, Westbrook hasn’t shown any issues with decreasing his role.
And why should he? Being relied on to produce a triple-double every night has to get exhausting at some point, and it’s not like anyone else will take his spot as the face of the franchise. By the way, I don’t think Westbrook is one to have his pride threatened like that, considering he’s the one who recruited George and is now seems willing to take a step back. Westbrook averaged a triple-double out of necessity, not out of pride. If pride was an issue, he’d be taking fewer shots attempts to save his field goal percentage.
Russell Westbrook has still not hit the showers, but you have to admire why not. pic.twitter.com/5T9uGTfndr
— Clay Horning (@clayhorning) November 25, 2018
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Even though Westbrook has appeared to take on a new role, he’s not afraid to take over when he has to. The haters came back in full force after the loss to Denver, pinning the loss on Westbrook after he went 1-for-12 from deep. But before blaming everything on Westbrook, it’s important to consider the circumstances.
In addition to missing Terrance Ferguson and Hamidou Diallo, the Thunder were playing their fifth game in eight nights and the second of a back-to-back. And after falling behind by 25, Westbrook took it upon himself to get his team back in it.
And sure, he may have shot the team out of it in the final minutes, but nobody else really seemed capable of shooting the team back into it. George had the best night among OKC players, shooting 8-for-21, while Schroder struggled with a 5-for-14 performance.
Despite trying to do maybe do too much against Denver, Westbrook seems to be aware his team doesn’t need him to be Superman every night anymore. George looks comfortable in an established role and Schroder doesn’t seem to be having an issue adjusting to his new team. Together, along with help from Steven Adams, Ferguson and Diallo, led the team to five wins without Westbrook. And since defense is at the forefront of the team’s success, the Thunder are scoring a league-best 21.7 points off turnovers and 17.4 second-chance points.
TPA scores are now updated for all #NBA players heading into games on Nov. 25: https://t.co/WyXQ8vqmiH pic.twitter.com/EXY3AtYVsp
— NBA Math (@NBA_Math) November 25, 2018
All things considered, the Thunder are heading in the right direction. The team has proven capable of winning with and without Westbrook, everybody seems to understand their role and the bench seems to be much improved even with the current injuries. In time the results will show how well Westbrook’s new role works out.
If I had to guess this early, I would say he will try to play off ball more often and be ready to take over when his team needs it. At the end of the day, it’s hard to be upset with a guy who is willing to do whatever it takes to win.