Former NBA MVP Russell Westbrook has played each of the last two seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers. But on Thursday, it was revealed that Westbrook will instead be playing for another team in the upcoming 2024-25 season.
This past season in particular, Westbrook struggled to find much playing time on the Clippers, averaging just 22.5 minutes per game, the lowest of his 16-year NBA career.
The Clippers made the tough decision to part ways with Westbrook on Thursday, agreeing to a sign-and-trade deal with the Utah Jazz for guard Kris Dunn, cash considerations, and a future second-round pick swap, first reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
ESPN Sources: The Los Angeles Clippers are sending guard Russell Westbrook, a second-round pick swap and cash to the Utah Jazz in a sign-and-trade agreement for guard Kris Dunn. pic.twitter.com/48DqYlZ2eK
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 18, 2024
The Jazz are not expected to be the ultimate landing spot for Westbrook. Instead, the Jazz will be buying out his contract, and the Denver Nuggets are expected to sign Westbrook for the 2024-25 season.
Westbrook is expected to agree on a contract buyout with the Jazz, clearing the way for him to eventually join the Denver Nuggets after clearing waivers, sources tell ESPN. https://t.co/ld4gsMPUhl
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 18, 2024
Naturally, fans had plenty to say about the news on social media.
RUSSELL WESTBROOK IS OFFICIALLY A NUGGET 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/DCnnOMtzxz
— Beastbrook (@Beastbr00k0) July 18, 2024
The Nuggets had their sights set on Russell Westbrook when free agency opened — and now lock him into their last open roster spot. Nikola Jokic has signed off on the idea of Westbrook in Denver. DeAndre Jordan also helped land Westbrook with the Nuggets. pic.twitter.com/2wjAwQ9Gry
— Harrison Wind (@HarrisonWind) July 18, 2024
Well @Nuggets fans, now that Russell Westbrook is actually about to join the team, how are we feeling now? pic.twitter.com/sVhqp8dpml
— Jeremy Nicolls (@JeremyNicolls) July 18, 2024
The Nuggets win the Westbrook-Dunn, Clippers-Jazz deal.
Now, they can get Russ for half of the cap/tax hit than they would have gotten him for by trading for him directly.
I also think Russ will help Denver more than most people seem to think he will.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) July 18, 2024
Russell Westbrook will provide a much needed spark for the Nuggets 💥 They lacked a guy who could repeatedly get in the paint this past playoffs when pressure tightened up. He's still a dog. pic.twitter.com/kz7J26Rnva
— Ball Don't Stop (@balldontstop) July 18, 2024
It will be interesting to see what kind of role Westbrook has on the Nuggets. With Jamal Murray in town, there is essentially no chance that Westbrook will be the team’s starting point guard. And his lack of shooting makes it unlikely that he makes the starting lineup altogether.
However, Westbrook very clearly does still possess a skillset that can be valuable to any NBA team off the bench. In recent years, the Nuggets bench has been amongst the best in the league, which is what ultimately led to the team’s championship two seasons ago.
Their bench wasn’t nearly as productive last season after a number of departures. So bringing in Westbrook should go a long way in making the bench a productive one once again.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.