Russell Westbrook has had an extremely rough start to life on the Denver Nuggets, struggling mightily to start the season. The issues that plagued him on the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers have been heightened on the Nuggets this season, prompting an anonymous NBA scout to rip into the former MVP, saying that Russ needs to retire and that the Nuggets need to waive him.
“They need to cut Russ. He can’t shoot. They have no spacing when he’s on the court. Teams are literally daring him to shoot and just crowding Jokic in the paint. And when he drives to the rim, he gets so deep and out of position that he can’t hit layups. Russ needs to retire. He’s not a good player anymore.”
It’s hard to find a silver lining in Westbrook’s performances this season. He has been an unmitigated disaster through the first two games, averaging 4.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 3.5 assists on 11.1% from the field. He’s gone 2-18 from the field and 1-9 from three over these games, and has somehow been a -37 across both games as well.
The Nuggets offensive rating when Nikola Jokic is on the court has been 110.1, which is above league average. Westbrook was acquired to provide a playmaking spark during non-Jokic minutes for Denver, but it seems he’s actively doing the opposite.
The Nuggets have an offensive rating of 54.9 in the 24 minutes they’ve played without Jokic on the floor, with Russ being on the floor for 22 of the 24 minutes. It’s shocking to see how bad Westbrook has been, with the Nuggets losing their opening two games of the season against the OKC Thunder and most recently, the Clippers.
The situation might have slightly improved with the Nuggets OT 127-125 win to the Toronto Raptors, where Westbrook had his best game of the season. Despite it being his best, it led to just seven points, four rebounds, and three assists on 2-6 shooting.
James Harden Defends Russell Westbrook
After the Nuggets’ recent matchup with the Clippers, former teammate James Harden opened up about the impact the pair have had in basketball as inner-city Los Angeles kids. Harden shrugged off the hate from fans that Russ has received by reiterating that he’ll be a Hall of Famer one day.
“We’re both inner-city L.A. kids. When it’s all said and done, we’ll be in the Hall of Fame. That’s a story right there. I’m happy he’s happy and he’s playing well. He’s doing his thing here in Denver. So it’s always happiness when we see each other.”
Westbrook will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, as very few players can match his accomplishments. Over his NBA career, Westbrook has won a league MVP, two scoring titles, three assist titles, nine All-NBA selections, and nine All-Star Game nods.
He has averaged 21.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 8.1 assists over his career. At the age of 36, it seems the best version of Westbrook is long gone and we might be at a point where no system or scheme can accommodate his talents while also making a push to win games.
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