Speaking from Brazil on Thursday, Durant told the Boston Globe that he won’t be reaching out to Westbrook anytime soon to congratulate him on signing an extension with Oklahoma City. After Durant’s departure, fans and pundits alike created a hotbed of conjecture regarding Westbrook’s future in OKC.
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However, OKC does not have a very good line-up to contend against the West powerhouse teams like the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs and other playoff teams Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies and Portland Trail Blazers.
“Do you want to say it, or do you want me to say it?” he said.
Renegotiating and extending Westbrook’s contract will bump the five-time All-Star’s pay from $17.8 million to $26.5 million for the 2016-17 season.
He’s quite clearly one of the best players in the National Basketball Association today and after inking a new two-year deal for the Thunder with a player option for the third year, he has a chance to lead the franchise in a post-Durant era. “You guys have basically raised me”. “For me, just being able to see the team we have, the guys we have…”
Westbrook appeared to be the Lakers’ best chance at acquiring a star after striking out in free agency multiple summers running.
“There’s no need to wait if you know where you want to be”.
With Kevin Durant gone, why would Westbrook decide to do this? Together, they made Oklahoma City a perennial N.B.A. title contender. He also had 18 triple-doubles, which was a league-high and tied him with NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson for the most triple-doubles in the last 30 years.
Westbrook averaged 23.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 10.5 assists and 2.0 steals last season. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday, Aug. 4, 2016, because the team had not announced the deal.
General manager Sam Presti said Westbrook “personifies numerous traits that are synonymous with Oklahoma and Oklahomans”.
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Russell Westbrook won’t be pulling a Kevin Durant and defecting to another team.
