ESPN analyst Jalen Rose agrees with many NBA general managers that the Oklahoma City Thunder should trade Russell Westbrook. The point guard might leave the team in free agency if he does not agree to a contract extension with OKC. As he said on ESPN's First Take, Rose believes Westbrook should go to San Antonio.
The Spurs are almost certainly unwilling to trade their young star core of LaMarcus Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard, but partnering Westbrook with the two would make that lineup downright scary. Outside of Aldridge and Leonard, San Antonio doesn't really have other assets to give up in order to get a player of Westbrook's caliber, so Jalen suggested a third team should enter the deal: the Boston Celtics. This move is extremely unlikely, but if Russell decided to join the Spurs in the offseason, they could have their own young super team that could rival the Warriors. This deal would also be complicated by the fact that the Celtics may want Westbrook for themselves, according to reports. In Rose's opinion, though, the Spurs are the ideal spot for Westbrook:
“If he wants to go to a team that has a championship pedigree, pack up right now and go to San Antonio.”
Another move Rose suggested is trading Westbrook to the Minnesota Timberwolves. He gets to go play with rising stars such as Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, and the Thunder get valuable pieces back that might include Ricky Rubio, Kris Dunn, or even Zach LaVine. Again, another unlikely move, but it is possible nonetheless.
Westbrook was drafted 4th overall in 2008 by the Seattle SuperSonics before the team moved to Oklahoma City and has played for the Thunder all eight of his NBA seasons. He is a five time All-Star, twice named All-Star MVP in 2015 and 2016, and was the 2015 regular season scoring champ. After averaging 23.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 10.4 assists as well as two steals in 80 games for the Thunder last season, he may follow his former partner-in-crime, Kevin Durant, away from OKC soon.
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