The Beard & The Brodie: Will James Harden and Russell Westbrook Make This Work…Again
The Russell Westbrook era in Oklahoma City is officially over. The Thunder traded the 8x all-star to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul, two First Round picks, and two pick swaps. On the surface, it looks like both teams just traded bad contracts. Paul is due 124 million over the next three years, while Westbrook is due 170 over the next four, but the Rockets have looked to extend their championship window. Paul is 34 years of age, in the twilight of his career, while Westbrook is 30, still in his prime but does have flaws attached to his game.
Once teammates on the OKC Thunder, Russ and James were all smiles at Thunder Media Day. Photo courtesy of AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki
If we examine the trade on both sides, it’s beneficial to both franchises. Oklahoma City is in full rebuild mode, understanding that even with Westbrook the team would not be competitive enough to match Russell’s nature. For the Rockets they were successful with their roster and system intact, but with Paul rapidly declining and reports of chemistry issues between him and franchise pillar James Harden, the rockets felt they needed a change.
As individual entities, Harden and Westbrook have destroyed the NBA record books.
Now that the trade is official, how will two of the most dynamic guards coexist at this stage in their careers? Their ball-dominant styles have approached record-breaking proportions over the last five seasons, but not too long ago both were part of a young core in Oklahoma City that competed for a championship at 22 and 23 years old. The meteoric rise of the Thunder over three years took them from the 8th seed to the NBA Finals. Despite losing to LeBron James and the Miami Heat in a tough five-game series, the Thunder had a boundless trajectory; an assumed dominance that would not be rivaled soon…or so we thought.
Westbrook and Harden always had high praise for each other. They knew each other since they were 10 years old and maintained a healthy respect for one another throughout the years. Photo courtesy of Sue Ogrocki / Associated Press
The business of the NBA can be cruel sometimes. While the Thunder future was secure behind the firmly established Durant and Westbrook, future extensions were up in the air for Harden and defensive anchor Serge Ibaka. Owner Clay Bennet chose Ibaka over the 6th man in Harden, choosing defense over the balance of a three-headed monster offensively. Four million dollars placed the Thunder in championship purgatory for the next three years losing in the Western Conference Finals twice; and for his cardinal sin, GM Sam Presti spent the next seven seasons trying to right the wrong of trading the dynamic guard, now turned perennial MVP standard-bearer.
One wrinkle Westbrook and Harden can look to add to their game to make this work is off the ball movement.
As individual entities, Harden and Westbrook have destroyed the NBA record books. Westbrook has 138 career triple-doubles, with 130 of them coming in the last five seasons. To put this in full context, the record for career triple-doubles is 181 by Oscar Robertson, and he did this over 14 seasons. Westbrook holds averages of 26.3 points per game, 10.1 assists and 9.4 rebounds. His 2016-17 campaign will forever be linked to his former running mates for different reasons.
Durant left OKC for the Golden State Warriors in Free Agency after blowing a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference finals. The fashion in which he did it is still a hot topic. Nevertheless, after eight seasons together Westbrook had to prove he could carry a team. He went on to do something not seen in 55 years by averaging a triple-double for an entire season. His 42 triple-doubles in a single season eclipsed Robertson’s hallowed record of 41, and in the process snatching the MVP from the clutches of Harden. Since then Westbrook has averaged a triple-double the next two seasons, while also leading the league in assists, but all it that led to were first-round exits.
Westbrook replaces Chris Paul on the Rockets. With Paul on the decline this move makes for exciting basketball in Houston. Photo courtesy of cbssports.com
Harden has become a scoring machine in ways that mirror the likes of Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. Over the last five seasons, Harden is averaging 30.4 points per game. He’s coming off a year in which he averaged 36.1 points per and had a streak of 32 consecutive 30-point games, which is second only to Wilt chamberlain. While he might have finished second to Westbrook in 2016-17, Harden came right back around in 2017-18 to claim the award. And if it wasn’t for Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks winning 60 games, Harden’s campaign could’ve won the award again considering all the injuries the Rockets had to overcome; that’s three 2nd place finishes in five seasons. During that span, Houston lost to the Warriors in four of the last five seasons, including two Western Conference Finals. The last two years Chris Paul’s presence, while proving to be a fruitful partnership wore out his welcome and here, we are.
Their ball-dominant styles have approached record-breaking proportions over the last five seasons, but not too long ago both were part of a young core in Oklahoma City that competed for a championship at 22 and 23 years old.
According to Second Spectrum, Harden and Westbrook rank either 1st or 2nd in points, field goal attempts, usage rate and drives to the rim in the last five seasons. In terms of isolations, Harden ranks first, while Westbrook ranks third.
The big question on the minds of people is will D’Antoni be able to manage Russell Westbrook and James Harden together. Photo courtesy of Sportsnaught.com
How will Rockets Head Coach Mike D’Antoni be able to make this work? Throughout his career, D’Antoni led tend to lean heavily on the 3-pt line. It isn’t about the makes or the misses, but more about the volume of threes taken and playing the averages. Therein lies the problem with Russell. For as great of an all-around contributor that Westbrook is, his shooting borders on putrid levels at times. In four of the last five seasons, Westbrook has taken at least four 3-pointers but made below 30 percent of them. An argument can be made that Westbrook has never been on a team with the quality of shooting that Houston possesses, making the spacing easier for him to shoot. While this is a plausible argument, Westbrook’s decision making regarding shot selection will be tested consistently with this level of freedom.
In terms of coexisting Westbrook has shown he can perform next to prolific players, if not deferring to a fault at times. While running co-star to Kevin Durant for eight seasons, Durant was a 4x scoring champion and was uber-efficient while doing so, shooting 49% from the field and 39% from deep in their eight seasons together. Also, Paul George is coming off a career year in his own right. Career-high averages in scoring for George put him in line for the MVP award, also complimenting his defensive prowess. There should be no reason why both can’t be successful during the regular season, especially when we consider Westbrook’s relentless attacking style creating catch and shoot possibilities for Harden and other shooters.
Two former NBA MVP’s reunited in Houston. Many don’t see this working out but there is a chance they will thrive. Stay tuned. Photo courtesy of the Houston chronical
One wrinkle Westbrook and Harden can look to add to their game to make this work is off the ball movement. Both have shown an ack of interest when the basketball is not in their hands, but it would behoove them to utilize each other’s dynamic ability to create not just for each other but for the players around them. During the regular season, it may not affect Houston as much, but in the postseason, when the competition ratchets up, their off the ball habits will be imperative to their success.
Whether the Rockets win the 2019-20 championship remains to be seen, but Harden and Westbrook deserve the benefit of the doubt considering their history together on the court, their friendship off it and the fact that they’re at a point in their careers where they don’t have anything left to prove individually. The only thing left to do is win collectively, what better way to do that than doing it together?
***Cover Photo courtesy of ClutchPoints