The OKC Thunder are in the midst of a dry spell, but could Russell Westbrook’s play be part of the issue? TI breaks it down.
After starting the season with putting up some of the worst shooting numbers of his career, Russell Westbrook is starting to find his stride, averaging 34.6 points on 50 percent shooting over the last five games. Unfortunately, with Westbrook’s evolution of play, came some rough games for the OKC Thunder. Over their last five games, the Thunder have only won one contest against the Jazz.
Many would think that Westbrook’s improved shooting would result in more wins along with better team player, but this has shown to not be the case. As Westbrook caught fire, Paul George began to cool off a bit. How coincidental is this though? Not much at all to be honest.
Russ providing more of the scoring has resulted in two major things; less team involvement and less time for the ball to be in George’s hands. Considering the success that OKC has had this season with George as “the man”, maybe this isn’t worth it.
Thunder are better when Russ shoots less
Don’t get me wrong, Russ has proven his ability to carry a team to the playoffs while being the primary scorer, but now that he doesn’t have to be, he’s better off not even trying. To put it in perspective, in games where Westbrook scores 30 points or more, the Thunder are 6-4, while in games PG scores 30 points or more, the Thunder are 21-5.
Statistically, the Thunder are more likely to play winning basketball when George is looked to as
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the primary scorer and Westbrook serves his role as the distributor and slasher.
Maybe “20 points-per-game” Westbrook is better than we’ve made him out to be. Obviously, this can be difficult on nights where PG struggles from the field, but when Westbrook is dishing out assists, the Thunder seems to be in a good place.
With George potentially out tonight against the Grizzlies, Russ is going to need to find a way to get the OKC Thunder back on a winning streak.
Let’s hope when George returns, Westbrook can give him his shooting powers back.