Does Russell Westbrook Fit With The Denver Nuggets?

Russell Westbrook over the past 6 years has played with 5 different teams, and over this stretch Russell's production on the court has been steadily declining. But at age 36, I still think Westbrook has some juice left in the tank, and he can for sure provide a ton of value on the court for the Denver Nuggets coming into next season. Now coming into his 17th year, it's pretty safe to say that Westbrook's best days physically are behind him. He simply doesn't have the same quick twitch explosiveness, which has hurt his ability to both get clean blowbys, as well as his finishing at the rim. Last year for the Clippers, Russell shot just above 53% around the basket, which is pretty low compared to the NBA average. When looking at the film, it's pretty clear that Russell doesn't have the same vertical pop off the floor. When dealing with contact or finishing in traffic, Russ does have a hard time lifting up and finding scoring windows, which has turned him into more of a grounded finesse paint scorer, and that's never been Westbrook's game. You'll see him here catch the ball just above the dunker spot, and from here it's just him and this defender playing one on one. But as Russell tries to attack across the lane, he pretty much gets no lift off the floor. And Russell's lack of explosiveness also affects his game on the perimeter, where again he has a really hard time blowing by the first line of defense, which has forced him to really dive into his handle in order to break down his man. But Westbrook's never had the most advanced game off the drip, and back in his OKC days, all of his moves paired really well with that ridiculous first step. So because Westbrook lacks both the quickness and ball skills to effectively beat his man on the perimeter, he commonly gets walled off and forces up these difficult floaters and pull-ups, which I think is another reason why his production and efficiency has suffered over the last few years. So overall, I think that's why Russell Westbrook over the past 6 years has gone from an MVP candidate to maybe an above average player off the bench. But having said that, Russell today is still finding a variety of ways to positively affect the game. Now despite all the limitations we just went over, I still think Westbrook does his best work attacking the basket. When playing downhill today, Russell primarily leans on his strength, being able to attack through the defense's frame and carve out driving lines. You'll see him here drive right into this defender's chest and completely open up his stance with his forearm. And that strength also gives Westbrook really good stability in the paint, where he's great at playing physical and initiating contact, but still maintaining balance as he extends into finishes. I like this move here, where Russell hits a nice in and out and gets Derek Lively on his head. Then he jumps off 2 feet and puts his inside shoulder into Lively's chest, creating a window to his right to extend the ball out. And that control in the lane also allows Westbrook to use some different strides in traffic. Watch him here first attack across the paint to his right, to then pick up and initiate contact, and step across for this I also think Westbrook does really good work when he's able to pick up some momentum with the ball. If Russell is able to pick up ahead of his team before he commits to his attack, he still has plenty of strength and athleticism to overwhelm the defense. Notice on this play how Russell is going to start his attack from half court, to then hezi by skipping off his right foot and replanting it to shoot himself downhill. This move here is pretty tough, where Russell is pushing the ball in transition, and he's going to first attack by pushing the ball across to his left hand, then he's going to pick up and use his 2 giant strides to extend to the rim. So Russell today still has the tools to be a pretty effective slasher. He obviously doesn't have the same gear that he had back in OKC, but he still has the strength to attack matchups, plus the burst to explode to the rim with the head of steam. So because the defense still has to respect Russ as a downhill scorer, he's able to pull a good amount of gravity towards the ball, which then opens up his passing. With the ball in the paint, I think Westbrook is one of the best passers across the league in tight spaces, where he's elite at making quick reads off the dribble and knifing the ball through these tight gaps. And many of his deliveries may be pretty wild and unorthodox, but Russ has spent a big chunk of his career making decisions in the paint, and this is where I think he's most comfortable. Watch him here attack towards the baseline, then explode up to make this tight wraparound pass. I like this dime here, where Russ is going to turn the corner off the screen, then aggressively pick up his dribble, as if he's about to explode up into a finish, which pulls the drop big out of his stance and sets up an uncontested dunk for the roller. I also think Westbrook has pretty good touch as a passer, and throughout his career he's always been pretty effective at tossing lobs above the rim, which has always been an effective delivery for him because of how often he pulls the backline defense up. So I think Russell today still has plenty of juice as an on-ball scorer and creator. I do think his lack of outside shooting and eroding athleticism has put a cap on his overall effect on the court, but for Denver Westbrook can for sure provide a good offensive punch when Jokic is off the floor. Now if Russell is on the court with Jokic, I do think Denver could use him as a cutter. Westbrook overall may not be the most active player off the ball, but he is pretty good at reading the defense and picking his spots. Watch him here read his defender slide over to stop the ball in the paint, so Russell in response is going to cut into this open space. This could be a potential 2 man action we see with Russell and Nikola, where Jokic initially catches the ball at the top of the key and Russell is going to run off him to set this cross screen, then cut backdoor, and this is a pass Jokic can make with his eyes closed. I also think Westbrook could be really effective playing around the dunker spot, where he still has the strength and lift to catch and finish, plus be active on the offensive glass. And Jokic has made a living on hitting the dunker spot on the short rolls. Now the elephant in the room with Westbrook being on the court with Jokic is that Russell is not a reliable 3 point shooter. Throughout his entire NBA career, Russell has never shot above 35% from 3, and last season Russell did have a pretty cold year So Westbrook's presence on the court could affect the Nuggets space. In the past, typically the only non-shooter Denver would have on the floor is Aaron Gordon, whose primary role was to hover around the dunker spot and be a play finisher and offensive rebounder. Right now I'm not sure how Gordon and Westbrook can fit together on the floor. If Denver plans on having Russell and Nikola on the court together, I think Russ is really going to have to buy into becoming an elite screener and cutter, which is something I think he has the ability to do, but we've never seen that be Russell's primary role. Now when transitioning over and looking at Westbrook's defense, this is where I think he can have his most consistent impact. On the ball Russell can be a really problematic defender, having the ability to both slide and keep the ball in front, plus the strength to absorb contact and wall off drives. You'll see him here initially get caught gambling for the steal, allowing Luka to catch with his outside driving angle, but notice how Russ is able to get back in front to then absorb the shoulder bumps and draw a turnover. And that strength also makes Westbrook pretty switchable, where he's comfortable switching up and offering good resistance down low. Watch Paolo Bencaro here try to seal Russ off on the block, but notice how Westbrook is able to fight around to deflect this pass, then scramble out of bounds to save this ball. Last year I also thought Westbrook's engagement off the ball was really good, where he was very active in gaps by both sliding across and providing help, to then rotate back out to his man on the perimeter. And that awareness leads to Russell making simple but really effective defensive reads. Notice on this play how Terry Rozier is pass the ball to the wing, then run off this flare screen, but Russ is effectively able to navigate around and get right in Rozier's face as he releases. I love this play here, where the Clippers defense initially gets broken down on the straight line drive, but Russell from the weak side is able to slide over and draw the offensive foul. And there are times where Russell can surprise the offense with how quick and explosive he is in spots. You'll see his man initially sprint up to set the screen, then cut back towards the basket, and Russ is able to both step up to take away the straight line drive, then scramble back down and break up this lob. So while Russell Westbrook is no longer an all star caliber player, I still think he can provide a ton of value on both ends of the court. He's still a pretty effective slasher and playmaker with the ball, there's the potential for him to fit really well in Denver's offense as a cutter, plus he's also shown that he can be a reliable defender against a variety of matchups. I do think Westbrook's lack of outside shooting will make him a difficult fit for some of Denver's liners, but we'll see how things play out down the road. If you enjoyed this video, please like and subscribe, and let me know in the comments what you think of Westbrook's game. The Kids here.