AbeVigodaLive wrote:RUMORS!!! Keeps the NBA relevant 24/7/365...
Shams suggesting Charlotte would take on Westbrook and his salary. Wiseman would catch A LOT of lobs.
Would that sort of move push Charlotte to move up for the top pick?
If they got Westbrook what would they have left to land the number 1 pick? Or vice versa. That team has next to nothing on it. They have Graham and PJ and the rest is pretty meh.
It's not going to cost much of anything to get Westbrook at this stage of his career and with his contract.
He was worth Chris Paul just last year and his play didn't fall off a cliff. I don't see Houston just taking a ham sandwich for him. I haven't seen anything saying they are looking to just blow everything up.
Yeah I would guess if they are actually in the business of being an actual basket all team they would want something of value for a player of Westbrook's abilities even if flawed. Idk if Westbrook and Graham would coexist well but if they could keep him and get Wiseman that would be intriguing and maybe not that insane. Just gets some guys that play D OF can make 3's around those 3 guys. If Rozier is actually a good defender he and Harden might actually make some sense together but if I was the Rockets I would be wanting at least one nice young asset/pick.
AbeVigodaLive wrote:RUMORS!!! Keeps the NBA relevant 24/7/365...
Shams suggesting Charlotte would take on Westbrook and his salary. Wiseman would catch A LOT of lobs.
Would that sort of move push Charlotte to move up for the top pick?
If they got Westbrook what would they have left to land the number 1 pick? Or vice versa. That team has next to nothing on it. They have Graham and PJ and the rest is pretty meh.
It's not going to cost much of anything to get Westbrook at this stage of his career and with his contract.
He was worth Chris Paul just last year and his play didn't fall off a cliff. I don't see Houston just taking a ham sandwich for him. I haven't seen anything saying they are looking to just blow everything up.
The reports yesterday were that both Harden and Westbrook have been left out of the conversation for management hires and are pissed off at the owner. Supposedly they both might ask for a trade. Who knows.
Intersting rumors but they seem to have some substance behind them.
AbeVigodaLive wrote:RUMORS!!! Keeps the NBA relevant 24/7/365...
Shams suggesting Charlotte would take on Westbrook and his salary. Wiseman would catch A LOT of lobs.
Would that sort of move push Charlotte to move up for the top pick?
If they got Westbrook what would they have left to land the number 1 pick? Or vice versa. That team has next to nothing on it. They have Graham and PJ and the rest is pretty meh.
It's not going to cost much of anything to get Westbrook at this stage of his career and with his contract.
He was worth Chris Paul just last year and his play didn't fall off a cliff. I don't see Houston just taking a ham sandwich for him. I haven't seen anything saying they are looking to just blow everything up.
Reportedly, James Harden doesn't want to play with Russell Westbrook any longer, and vice versa. There's also been some chatter that other Rockets players don't enjoy the scheme/style that Houston employs, but that's besides the point. Westbrook is 32-years old today and is set to make $40-million or more annually the next three seasons, which is insane. It was also Westbrook's worst season since his second year in the league, arguably.
If Westbrook had the skill level of a Chris Paul, then I think the return could be meaningful, but at this point I expect Houston to offload him for expiring contracts, role players, and/or whatever draft capital they can get their hands on. It also doesn't help that there's only a handful of teams that can handle Westbrook's contract -- most notably being New York and Orlando. There likely won't be anything close to a bidding war that we'd normally see when an All-Star or All-NBA player is available.
That's just my take after putting everything together. Westbrook is closer to John Wall in terms of trade value than he is Paul right now.
AbeVigodaLive wrote:RUMORS!!! Keeps the NBA relevant 24/7/365...
Shams suggesting Charlotte would take on Westbrook and his salary. Wiseman would catch A LOT of lobs.
Would that sort of move push Charlotte to move up for the top pick?
If they got Westbrook what would they have left to land the number 1 pick? Or vice versa. That team has next to nothing on it. They have Graham and PJ and the rest is pretty meh.
It's not going to cost much of anything to get Westbrook at this stage of his career and with his contract.
He was worth Chris Paul just last year and his play didn't fall off a cliff. I don't see Houston just taking a ham sandwich for him. I haven't seen anything saying they are looking to just blow everything up.
Reportedly, James Harden doesn't want to play with Russell Westbrook any longer, and vice versa. There's also been some chatter that other Rockets players don't enjoy the scheme/style that Houston employs, but that's besides the point. Westbrook is 32-years old today and is set to make $40-million or more annually the next three seasons, which is insane. It was also Westbrook's worst season since his second year in the league, arguably.
If Westbrook had the skill level of a Chris Paul, then I think the return could be meaningful, but at this point I expect Houston to offload him for expiring contracts, role players, and/or whatever draft capital they can get their hands on. It also doesn't help that there's only a handful of teams that can handle Westbrook's contract -- most notably being New York and Orlando. There likely won't be anything close to a bidding war that we'd normally see when an All-Star or All-NBA player is available.
That's just my take after putting everything together. Westbrook is closer to John Wall in terms of trade value than he is Paul right now.
Westbrook still put up all-star numbers last season with 27.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 1.6 steals. He also tends to stay healthy and is someone you can count on to play major minutes every game. He's hyper competitive and teamed with Durant to turn OKC into what was probably the 2nd best team in the League several years ago. He's barely 32 and still looks healthy and athletic. John Wall is coming off an Achilles tear at age 30. That alone means he has far less trade value than Westbrook. In addition, Wall had physical issues before his Achilles injury, playing only 41 games in the 2017-18 season. His contract is identical to Westbrook's. So while I agree that Westbrook's trade value is limited, I don't agree that his value is on par with John Wall's. The Wizards will have to offer picks or young high-upside players to entice a team to take Wall off their hands. I'm not sure that's true of Westbrook.
Between Westbrook and Chris Paul, it's a question of what you need and for how long. Westbrook is 3.5 years younger than Chris Paul and a much better rebounder. On the other hand, Chris Paul is a more skilled player and efficient scorer. Westbrook and Paul have the same annual salary, but Westbrook has one more year on his deal. Neither one has ever won a championship. So pick your poison. I don't see a good fit for either one around the League. Chris Paul might be traceable for value next year when he'll be an expiring contract. As for Westbrook, maybe the Knicks or Hawks will make a deal for him. Both teams have some cap room to potentially make room for his contract. But I'm guessing that the Rockets are stuck with Westbrook. With a financially stressed owner, perhaps that means the Rockets will feel compelled to deal James Harden. And that brings us back to the possibility of a three-way deal in which the Wolves get Simmons. I don't really see that happening, but it's interesting to speculate.
Westbrook started off slow... but was awesome until the playoffs when he had Covid and some quad injury.
32 / 8 / 8 / 52% fg in Jan
33 / 7 / 6 / 55% fg in Feb
I know he's always been the easy whipping boy, and sometimes deservedly so... but sometimes... sometimes... we have to acknowledge that he's pretty good.
Historically, his teams win a lot of games. And he's a big reason for that despite his obvious flaws.
Since the 2016-17 season, Russell Westbrook has a 35.4 USG% with a .530 TS% during the regular season.
That's the third-worst efficiency during that span among all players with at least 25.0 USG% -- ahead of only Reggie Jackson and Andrew Wiggins. Yuck.
Maybe he turns it up in the playoffs? Nope. He has a 36.9 USG% and 48.6 TS% -- the worst over that span.
What's significant about the 2016-17 season? That's the season after Kevin Durant departed in free agency. Westbrook's numbers, specifically his efficiency, have gone downhill ever since. He makes up for it with name value and volume stats, but at what price to the team?
Camden wrote:Since the 2016-17 season, Russell Westbrook has a 35.4 USG% with a .530 TS% during the regular season.
That's the third-worst efficiency during that span among all players with at least 25.0 USG% -- ahead of only Reggie Jackson and Andrew Wiggins. Yuck.
Maybe he turns it up in the playoffs? Nope. He has a 36.9 USG% and 48.6 TS% -- the worst over that span.
What's significant about the 2016-17 season? That's the season after Kevin Durant departed in free agency. Westbrook's numbers, specifically his efficiency, have gone downhill ever since. He makes up for it with name value and volume stats, but at what price to the team?
It's true that his own efficiency has gone down, but he still has a massive gravitational pull when he plays because of his ability to get to the bucket, which frees up open shots for others.So while he himself isn't very efficient, he does help make others more efficient.
Having said that, I do think he took a step back this past season and is on the precipice of a fairly steep drop in the upcoming seasons. So ultimately I agree he could be a massive anchor given his salary.
Camden wrote:Since the 2016-17 season, Russell Westbrook has a 35.4 USG% with a .530 TS% during the regular season.
That's the third-worst efficiency during that span among all players with at least 25.0 USG% -- ahead of only Reggie Jackson and Andrew Wiggins. Yuck.
Maybe he turns it up in the playoffs? Nope. He has a 36.9 USG% and 48.6 TS% -- the worst over that span.
What's significant about the 2016-17 season? That's the season after Kevin Durant departed in free agency. Westbrook's numbers, specifically his efficiency, have gone downhill ever since. He makes up for it with name value and volume stats, but at what price to the team?
It's true that his own efficiency has gone down, but he still has a massive gravitational pull when he plays because of his ability to get to the bucket, which frees up open shots for others.So while he himself isn't very efficient, he does help make others more efficient.
Having said that, I do think he took a step back this past season and is on the precipice of a fairly steep drop in the upcoming seasons. So ultimately I agree he could be a massive anchor given his salary.
Russell Westbrook took more shots per game than James Harden last season. I guess shot attempts are necessary to get that gravitational pull we reference here, but damn... He has the ball in his hands a lot, but he's just not the player he once was. That contract is death to the salary cap.
That means the Knicks will probably trade for him and Kevin Love.
Camden wrote:Since the 2016-17 season, Russell Westbrook has a 35.4 USG% with a .530 TS% during the regular season.
That's the third-worst efficiency during that span among all players with at least 25.0 USG% -- ahead of only Reggie Jackson and Andrew Wiggins. Yuck.
Maybe he turns it up in the playoffs? Nope. He has a 36.9 USG% and 48.6 TS% -- the worst over that span.
What's significant about the 2016-17 season? That's the season after Kevin Durant departed in free agency. Westbrook's numbers, specifically his efficiency, have gone downhill ever since. He makes up for it with name value and volume stats, but at what price to the team?
It's true that his own efficiency has gone down, but he still has a massive gravitational pull when he plays because of his ability to get to the bucket, which frees up open shots for others.So while he himself isn't very efficient, he does help make others more efficient.
Having said that, I do think he took a step back this past season and is on the precipice of a fairly steep drop in the upcoming seasons. So ultimately I agree he could be a massive anchor given his salary.
Russell Westbrook took more shots per game than James Harden last season. I guess shot attempts are necessary to get that gravitational pull we reference here, but damn... He has the ball in his hands a lot, but he's just not the player he once was. That contract is death to the salary cap.
That means the Knicks will probably trade for him and Kevin Love.
True, but Harden had more possessions end with free throw attempts, which don't count as shot attempts but is a used possession nonetheless (and an efficient one at that). So in the end Harden had a higher usage rate than Westbrook even though he had fewer shot attempts.
But that was also how Houston WANTED to play. It was basically get the ball to two of the best one-on-one scorers in the game and spread the hell out. I think they took that whole thing as far as they could and it's pretty much jumped the shark at this point. And the same could be said of Westbrook's game.
I don't think many people on here actually like Westbrook the player, but if you are a Charlotte or a NY or any other team trying to become relevant he's a guy that gives you high production and name recognition right off the bat. That's why I don't think he's worth just a ham sandwich. Struggling franchises are gonna look at those big counting numbers and see a guy who can just make them relevant quicker even if it's not going to be a title contending move. Hell if we just wanted to make the playoffs next year, getting Westbrook with Russell and Towns would get that done. I don't think Rosas thinks that way, but I could easily see other teams thinking that way.
