Russell Westbrook

[...] Per the above, the core of the team is the quartet of Westbrook, George, Adams and Roberson. That foursome is a fearsome defensive group - Westbrook can do it, even if he so often chooses not to, while the other three are among the league's best at their positions. Roberson in particular provides invaluable help all over that half of the court, as seen in the team's second-half struggles last season without him before Corey Brewer provided a patch-up job to close things out.

That quartet, however, is also terribly spaced. George is a plus outside shooter as long as he is not in a three-point competition, but the rest are not at all. Adams leaves the paint on offence only to screen, Westbrook has never been a good outside shooter (perhaps because he jumps so high and does not hold onto his follow-through), and Roberson is infamously a non-shooter. [...]

Russell Westbrook
PG, 6’3, 200lbs, 28 years old, 9 years of experience

MVP! MVP! MVP! Make whatever arguments you want to make about how the rebounds meant slacking off defensively, about the arbitrary nature of his achievement, about the many forced shots, about the astro-nomical usage rate…..do it all at your leisure. Just acknowledge alongside it all that that season right there was ridiculous.

Player Plan: Two years and circa. $61.2 million remaining, with a player option after this season. Extend it as much as possible, but free agency probably beckons soon.