Adding context to the latest narrative surrounding OKC Thunder star Russell Westbrook

The latest narrative traveling the twitter-verse is the correlation between OKC Thunder star Russell Westbrook’s shot attempts and OKC wins.

While he is arguably the greatest athlete to ever grace the NBA court at the point guard position, OKC Thunder star Russell Westbrook is subject to scrutiny night in and night out. The latest narrative surrounding the superstar looks at a correlation between his shot attempts and OKC win percentage.

In a vacuum these numbers are undeniable. Many fans take the statistics at face value – when Westbrook shoots less than 20 shots, Oklahoma City’s win percentage lies at a cool 71.1 percent (27-11). The supporting statistics include a 6.2 point increase in team points per game and jump 3-point percentage (37.3).

A point originally brought up by controversial media personality Colin Cowherd on his show “The Herd”, the numbers are profound and simply say the team is better when the Brodie elects to shoot the ball less overall.

However, we need to add context to the argument.

Russ is the league leader in passing categories

Westbrook is considered a ball hog by many fans of the NBA despite the numbers suggesting otherwise. In fact, the Brodie actually leads the league in assists and potential assists with his teammates converting open looks at a horrible rate.

Westbrook cannot control whether teammates make shots. OKC rank near the bottom in open look and wide-open looks from two and three’s. In addition to this, the Brodie also leads the league in passes out of drives to the cup (9.6).

When the Thunder are struggling to make shots, it’s not for a lack of open looks. Westbrook does his part by creating them for the team but OKC does a poor job converting them.

Final Thought

If it weren’t for a hot 25 game stretch, the Thunder would rank near the bottom in all shooting categories. As it stands, Oklahoma City is 19th in field goal percentage (45.3), 23rd in 3-point percentage and 28th in free throw percentage (71.3). Paul George is the only reliable 3-point shooter on the team (38.7) and while Jerami Grant has emerged as the teams next best (39.2), opposing defenses tend to sag, daring him to shoot the long ball.

Does this excuse Westbrook’s shooting percentages this season? No. His 42.6 percent from the field, 28.4 percent from three and 65.4 percent from the line is some of the most inefficient shooting in the NBA. He’s never been a great 3-point shooter so cutting back on 3-point attempts is one way to increase the team’s overall percentage beyond the arc.

More from Thunder News

• 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

Still, the Oklahoma City ride and die by Westbrook but suggesting he shoots them out of games is simply ridiculous. Russ shoots at a higher clip when the squad is struggling and he does what stars do – take over games.

Prior to the All-Star break, PG13 was the designated shot maker at the end of games but he’s tapered off significantly since.

PG has suffered from shoulder soreness since the break putting together a string of poor shooting performances and placing Westbrook at the forefront to carry the offense.

The Brodie has made a concerted effort to get others involved but if they aren’t making shots, you bet he will begin to shoot more.