Russell Westbrook is one of the best players in the NBA. He has an MVP award, seven all-star appearances, made the NBA first team twice, NBA second team four times, and is a two-time NBA scoring champion. Last season, he accomplished something that only one player before him has ever done which is average a triple-double throughout the whole season. This season, he averaged a triple-double for the second straight year, making him the first player to average a triple-double in a season twice and the first player to average a triple-double in consecutive seasons.
2016-2017 season
In the 2016 offseason, Kevin Durant shocked everyone by spurning Westbrook and the Thunder to sign with the star-studded Warriors. The move angered basketball fans as he was seen as a snake and a traitor for signing with the Warriors -- who made it to the NBA Finals two years in a row and won it all in the 2014-2015 season. Durant going to the Warriors wasn't taken well by his superstar teammate Westbrook as he cut off all communication with him and was no longer friends with Durant because of the move.
Even though he did lose his superstar teammate to a better team, Durant leaving the Thunder opened up an opportunity for Westbrook to lead the team and show his true potential as one of the best players in the game.
He did just that -- in the 2016-2017 season, he averaged 31.6 points, 10.4 assists and 10.7 rebounds. His spectacular season led to him winning his first career MVP award.
2017-2018 season
With Westbrook entering his final season under contract, the Thunder wanted to build a winning team around him. The Thunder front office went out and traded for Paul George to give Westbrook some help on the court.
To bolster their roster, the Thunder also acquired Carmelo Anthony which made the Thunder serious contenders for a championship.
To reward Westbrook for his phenomenal 2016-2017 season, the Thunder gave Westbrook a five-year, $205 million contract. Even though the Thunder struggled to put things together as a team during the season, Westbrook still had a phenomenal year without all the fanfare and MVP chants.
He yet again averaged another triple-double for the whole season, averaging 25.4 points, 10.2 assists and 10.1 rebounds. While the MVP hasn't been determined yet, most people do no predict that he will win this year, and most don't even have him in the top three.
The Thunder finished fourth in the Western Conference with a record of 48-34 and are facing the Jazz in the first round of the playoffs. With the regular season over, Westbrook and the Thunder are looking to prove former NBA player Paul Pierce right -- before the season started, Pierce predicted that the Thunder would win it all.
