Russell Westbrook has played just one season in Houston and reportedly wants out all ready. Many thought his friendship with James Harden would be enough to keep the duo together at least 2 years before the Rockets would have broken them up, after not accomplishing the goal of winning an NBA Championship. One of the reasons that Westbrook supposedly wants out is because he would like to return to a floor general role, which he had when he played for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
There are a couple things that may make this demand a lot harder than Westbrook may realize. One of the first things is his contract is astronomical. Over the next 3 years is schedule to make 41, 44, and a player option for 47 million dollars. This makes his contract very hard to move for a player that I believe you cannot win championship with as your number 1 option. Also he is not a good 3 point shooter which is very pivotal in today’s NBA, in addition, he likes to force things in clutch situations. This occurs in the form of bad decision making when shooting 3’s when left wide open or my favorite going 1 on 5 when teammates are open. Lastly, his value around the league is not as high as his contract would suggest.
I have 3 teams that should try to trade for him so they can possibly make the playoffs and even one championship contender.
Charlotte Hornets
The first team that comes to mind is the Charlotte Hornets. This would be great for many reasons one of being that the Hornets will have relevancy in the NBA, and they would be able to compete for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Also, it would be great to see Westbrook who is partnered with Jordan Brand to play for Michael Jordan in Charlotte. Imagine Westbrook bringing back excitement to the city of Charlotte about their basketball team; this is something they have not seen since the 1990’s.
New York Knicks
The Knicks would be interesting just that you have another star in New York. Also don’t forget Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving play in Brooklyn so it can be a fun matchup to see. Just think after a break away dunk Westbrook getting the crowd hyped. The NBA is just better when the Knicks are good and to have Madison Square Garden going crazy with a superstar who embodies that toughness of the glory days fans always talk about.
Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks are the one contender that if they traded for Westbrook, I would not be surprised. If I am the Bucks, I would need Giannis to sign his super max contract before I trade for him. If you trade without getting Giannis’ contract secured you can very well be left with that ridiculous Westbrook contract for an additional two years with no chance of getting to a championship. Westbrook would be able to be a floor general and would he run a great two-man game with Giannis. Also, this only works if Giannis improves his ability to shoot especially from 3.
It will be interesting where Westbrook goes, he likely will not win a championship, but it will be entertaining.
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