From certain points of view, analyzing the figure of Russell Westbrook can even be fascinating. Neither has he been everything, nor has he been relegated to nothing; but he continues to dominate covers just as he did in his time of records, triple-double, titles of Top Scorer or MVP of the season. The point guard is one of those truly unique players. Quickly recognizable if you don’t look at his name on his back, or his face or his body: only the way he bounces, walks, moves or throws. Paying attention only to that, you can perfectly discover who you are talking about, who you are seeing. And, for better or worse, it is very difficult not to glimpse a player who was once a star in all of these things. and now it is a very difficult element to place in any team that wants to win a ring. And that, however, he has a characteristic that makes him truly special: when he was a top player in the NBA, he had a huge list of detractors. And now, that it is the opposite, he has staunch defenders who continue to claim his figure.
Why there is still a section of the fans that continues to support Westbrook is a real mystery. A very specific player, for the better, but above all for the worse, he spent his time with the Lakers It resulted in a chain of misfortunes and his arrival at the Clippers has unraveled a team that was on an upward trend and now sees the playoffs in jeopardy. His tactical fit is complicated, unthinkable, almost impossible: too much time on the ball, questionable decision-making, poor defensive attitude and aptitude, and an almost insulting lack of outside shooting. Westbrook is still a good running player and can contribute to a system if he’s surrounded by shooters, but he becomes a problem in the game. clutch timeHe risks a lot and his presence is almost a nuisance when things are complicated. Far behind are the times of the Thunder, where he managed to be an ideal complement to Kevin Durant and then moving excellently off the wing, befitting the fast, engaging style of a team that had good shooting and powerful finishers near the rim.
His signing for the Clippers has been unintelligible: The Angelenos were fourth before his arrival with a record of 33-28. Now, they are eighth with a 33-33, in positions of one play-in that it seemed that they were going to avoid and with only two victories ahead of the Lakers, eleventh and eager to get into the top 10 within that monumental traffic jam that exists in the Western Conference. The Clippers are 0-5 with Westbrook, with whom they haven’t won a game. They removed Reggie Jackson from the team and Terance Mann from a hypothetical starting lineup to introduce a player who had just been a substitute for the Lakers. And the results are there: the 17 points and 14 assists of his initial duel against the Kingsthe second most points has accumulated in the history of the NBA (176-175) they have become 27 and 10 in their fifth meeting… and in two duels resolved by the minimum, with defeat. Through Westbrook’s fault or not, but with an unequivocal ending that hurts both the team and the narrative that revolves around it. They don’t win with the point guard: that’s how it is. There’s no more.
The victories will come sooner or later for the Clippers, but the situation is worrisome and Westbrook’s ability to be competitive in the playoffs is very much in question. He averages 16.6 points and 8.8 assists in his five games with his new jersey, but has finished with a negative +/- in three of them. and, in the fourth, his performance was very worrying, very consistent with what he was doing in the Lakers: 8 points, 6 assists, 4 losses, 3 of 12 in field goals and 0 of 5 in triples. Although what does it matter: after all, when he has better statistics, his team doesn’t win either. He has changed the game system, he represents a defensive problem similar to that of Reggie Jackson and there are moments in which he unblocks the attack when the shooters are plugged in, but his resolving capacity in tight endings is negligible. And with two stars in Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, we’re not in the same situation that he was in with the Thunder or the Wizards, where he played his last great season. and averaged a triple-double in a single season for the fourth and last time (22.2+11.5+11.7). That year he played his last playoffs, also with a triple-double, but dropping to 19 points, with 33% shooting from the field and 25% in triples. Anyway, as usual.
Whose fault is it?
It would be unfair to put all the blame on Westbrook. After the second loss of the Clippers with his presence, it was leaked that it was Paul George who requested (or demanded) his signing and that Kawhi Leonard turned in profile in an attitude to which we are already accustomed. The situation was similar, of course, to the one that caused Westbrook to land on the Lakers, with LeBron James and Anthony Davis requesting his arrival. And the Clippers seem not to have learned from the mistakes of their city mates, assimilating the point guard. A toxic presence no matter how much he signed for the veteran’s minimum, already with those 47 million dollars reduced in a buyout that he agreed with the Jazz, a team to which he was transferred and from which he did not even visit the city. His presence on the track is nonsense and his rapport with George, with whom he already shared a dressing room with the Thunder, is far from being what he wanted.in the same way that happens with a Kawhi who, as always, seems oblivious to everyone and everything.
Again, it’s not all Westbrook’s fault: Tyronn Lue, an underappreciated coach given to managing big egos, tries to fit him into the system, but it is very obvious that the team improves with Westbrook on the bench, just as it’s been abundantly clear over the past two seasons that Kawhi and Paul George play better separately than together. In the Clippers board, someone had the brilliant idea of responding to the requests of one of its stars, as they have done since the project began, the entity being kidnapped by two incomprehensible characters, two athletes who get injured a lot and two basketball professionals who sometimes don’t seem so much. Another problem within the contradictions of the empowered players and that prevents the Clippers from advancing, with a phrase that has become a mantra and is constantly repeated: that this is your year. And then it never is.
And now that?
The Clippers’ situation is solvable, but not uncritical for that. In the enormous tidal wave that the West finds itself in, they must have a quick reaction so as not to have scares or problems. Before the arrival of Westbrook, it seemed that they were definitely taking flight, with 5 victories in 8 games and wait, what a surprise, pretty consistent when it comes to health from Kawhi and Paul George. Now, Kawhi, who averages 23 points per night, seems to be suffering from knee problems and George continues with his usual irregularity, having nights in which he looks like an MVP and others in which he goes completely unnoticed. People like Norman Powell, Ivica Zubac or Marcus Morris can keep the typebut if the stars are not decisive, it is possible that we are talking about the final disintegration of a team that was formed with the ring in mind and that has not even been able to reach the Finals.
Tyronn Lue has a job, and in it is also finding a place for Russell Westbrook. Where to fit it, knowing who it works best with on the track (it is usually surrounded by shooters) and if it pays more to put him next to Kawhi, George or both. His reliability is low and minute management will also be key, especially at the end of the game, a problem that the Clippers already had and that they are not going to solve with Westbrook, who makes sometimes incomprehensible decisions in hot moments. It is a problem to be solved for the Angelenos. And a tough situation for Westbrook in his hometown of Los Angeles. A good guy who has played in the NBA Finals, has won the MVP and is the king of triple-doubles. But that he has ended up being a star that has not been able to adapt his role to an NBA that does not wait for anyone. Neither to him.