Russell Westbrook has proven his dedication once again with the Oklahoma City Thunder. On Friday, the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player signed a five-year extension on his current contract worth $205 million, the biggest deal in league history.
With Westbrook on board, the future of the team is sealed for at least five more years. Earlier, many OKC fans expressed their fears of losing him in the free agency next year. Westbrook and new teammates Paul George and Carmelo Anthony, had player options on their contract which they could exercise next July.
The impact of Westbrook extension
Paul George admitted that Westbrook’s commitment and decision to stay with the Thunder will “absolutely” have a great impact on his decision whether to stay next season. “His values and his beliefs, him being committed to this organization says a lot. And I'm one person that's enjoying it here, so I think when that time comes, the decision will be easier to make for myself,” ESPN reported that George said in a recent interview.
For his part, Carmelo Anthony wouldn’t answer the same question for now as he wanted to give all his attention on how he can fit in on the team. Nevertheless, it won’t be a question if the trio can bring the Oklahoma City Thunder to the NBA Finals; albeit, winning the title.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported that the deal made Westbrook a part of the franchise until 2022-23 NBA season with a player option on the last year. As part of the agreement signing the designated player veteran extension, Westbrook gets 35 percent of the salary cap. This means that on the first year of his extension which is the 2018-19 NBA season, his salary is $35.3 million.
Number of shots per game
The arrival of Paul George and Carmelo Anthony in Oklahoma City definitely brings a lot of changes especially on the offensive end of the court. Simply put, Anthony’s perimeter shooting and George’s aggressiveness down the baseline would give another perspective coach Billy Donovan can explore.
Yet one concern is the number of field goal attempts per game.
Last season, Westbrook and Anthony ranked first and second with 20.2 and 20.1, respectively; George attempted 16.8 shots each game, good for 13th spot. That’s a total of 57.1 shots per game – the Cavaliers’ and the Warriors’ Big Three were tied with 52.4 field goal attempts last season.
In theory, each team could get 100 possessions in a game. Minus the turnovers and shots that ended on free throws among other factors, this could go down to 85 shots. Minus the 57.1 attempts from Westbrook, George, and Anthony, that’s approximately 28 shots for the rest of the team. Surely, adjustments will be made. But which player will give way remains a big question.
Westbrook, the family man
Last season’s scoring leader has indicated that he plans to remain with the Thunder.
However, with the hectic schedule of the games once the 2017-18 NBA season, Westbrook decided that family obligations come first while on vacation.
“I've been at home,” Westbrook said as posted on NBA.com. With the newest addition to the Westbrook family, the reigning MVP is hands-on in helping his wife with their baby boy Noah, “I've been trying to help my wife, help my family and enjoying and embracing that moment as much as I can because I know during the season, I'm going to be traveling and moving around.”
Westbrook is also on an extended vacation after getting a PRP injection to his left knee last week. Sitting out the team’s training camp is a well-deserved rest considering he averaged a triple-double last season. In connection with his superb performance, Russell Westbrook also broke Oscar Robertson's long-standing record for most triple-doubles in a single-season with 42.
