They were teammates in Oklahoma City with the Thunder until the summer of 2016. Shockingly, Kevin Durant decided to end his partnership with Russell Westbrook to join the Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors. This was just a few months after the duo lost to those same Warriors in the Western Conference Finals after blowing a commanding 3-1 series lead.
The break-up was bad and the battles that have ensued in their head-to-head match-ups are worthy of Oscars in drama.
After Westbrook won last year’s MVP, he proved to everyone that he is just as good, if not better, than his former teammate.
But, in last February’s All-Star Game at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, the two appeared jovial together playing for Team LeBron. The hatchet was buried. Finally.
With Westbrook and Durant coming to terms with their falling out two summers ago, they are forging their own paths, distinct from one another. Both are enjoying success especially, now that Westbrook has his own super team with Paul George and Carmelo Anthony alongside him, the same way that Durant has Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green.
If the Thunder win the championship this year, he would tie Durant with one ring apiece. But, even if he doesn’t win the title, the question that begs an answer is this: Who has a better legacy so far?
MVP Seasons
Durant averaged 32.0 points, 7.4 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 1.3 steals when he won the 2013-14 MVP award. He became the first player since Allen Iverson in 2000-01 to win both the scoring title and the MVP award in the same season.
By capturing his fourth scoring title, Durant joined Michael Jordan (10), Wilt Chamberlain (seven), George Gervin (four), and Iverson (four) as the only players in league history to accomplish the feat.
Brodie won his MVP award in a record-setting 2016-17 season where he averaged a triple-double. It was only the second time in NBA history that someone other than the great Oscar Robertson averaged a triple-double for a season. He also surpassed Robertson’s total number of triple-doubles with 42 total for the year. He registered the last one in dramatic fashion, scoring 50 points and winning the game on a buzzer beater.
Westbrook averaged a league-best 31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, 10.4 assists, and 1.6 steals per game.
As good as they are, Durant and Westbrook each have won just one MVP so far. But if you were to compare their MVP seasons, Westbrook’s carries more weight as he had to lift an Oklahoma City team on his shoulders to the playoffs without another All-Star. Durant, meanwhile, had Westbrook by his side when he won his award. Also, the 6-foot-3 point guard won the award while breaking several records and setting new ones throughout the season.
EDGE: Westbrook
Awards / Recognitions / Statistics
Durant (via basketball-reference.com)
- 2007-08 Rookie of the Year
- 2012 All-Star Game Most Valuable Player
- 2013-14 Most Valuable Player
- 2017 Finals Most Valuable Player
- 2017 NBA champion
- 9x All-Star
- 2007-08 All-Rookie First Team
- 5x All-NBA First Team
- 2x All-NBA Second Team
- 4x scoring champion
- 8 triple-doubles (as of this writing)
- 2x Olympic gold medalist with Team USA (2012, 2016)
- 1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.1 blocks, 49.0% FG, 38.4% 3-point FG, 88.2% FT
Westbrook via (basketball-reference.com)
- 2x All-Star Game Most Valuable Player (2015, 2016)
- 2016-17 Most Valuable Player
- 7x All-Star
- 2008-09 All-Rookie First Team
- 2x All-NBA First Team
- 4x All-NBA Second Team
- 2x scoring champion
- 102 triple-doubles (as of this writing)
- 1x Olympic gold medalist with Team USA (2012)
- 9 points, 6.5 rebounds, 8.1 assists, 1.7 steals, 0.3 blocks, 43.5% FG, 31.0% 3-point FG, 81.5% FT
In terms of awards, recognition, and career statistics, Durant has the edge over Westbrook, as the latter has only really come into his own these last two years. Their individual greatness has become more apparent away from each other rather than together on the same team.
For the longest time, the Thunder went as far as Durant would take them, with Westbrook as his second-in-command.
Durant came into the league with a mature game that only needed some polishing. Over the years, the 6-foot-9 forward became more and more efficient with his shot-making and his defensive prowess.
Westbrook, on the other hand, was this untamed monster that needed to be reeled in whenever he ran out of control. But, he was a talented individual who only had to learn how to refine his game in order to be considered the best point guard in the league.
In a few more years, Westbrook will most likely overtake Durant in this category as he racks up astonishing numbers that the latter sacrificed when he joined a super team.
Especially with the Finals MVP and a championship under his belt, Durant has the advantage here.
EDGE: Durant
Leadership
For nine years, the Thunder were Durant’s team. He called the shots for most of their time together, while Westbrook slowly developed into a leader himself. Since the Seattle Supersonics/Oklahoma City Thunder won 20 games in his first year, Durant led them to a 50-win season in his third year. Soon, they would win an Oklahoma City franchise-best 60 games in 2012-13.
As his co-star, Westbrook was difficult at times for Durant to control as the former’s talent demanded that they share the leadership role. In only the third game of the 2011-12 season, the All-Stars had a shouting match that ended with them being separated. It was difficult for Durant to assert his leadership with Westbrook needing his own pedestal.
Eventually, the two learned to co-exist with Durant as the face of the franchise and Westbrook taking some of the leadership controls from time to time.
After moving to the Bay Area, Durant has deferred to Curry, the back-to-back MVP who has led the franchise to heights unknown the past years, when it comes to leadership with the Warriors.
Westbrook learned to curb his emotions the past two years with Durant’s departure to the Warriors. Though he continues to make certain plays that boggle the mind, no one argues about whose team it is. Unlike Kyrie Irving, who ceded control of the Cleveland Cavaliers once LeBron James came on board, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony know the Thunder is Westbrook’s team.
It wasn’t easy to lead his new teammates during the early part of this season. Westbrook sought to accommodate his fellow All-Stars, hoping to make them feel welcome by sharing the load. But, that didn’t translate to wins, so by the time December rolled around, the dynamic point guard from UCLA decided to take matters into his own hands by asserting himself and letting his co-stars follow his lead. As a result, the Thunder started winning games more consistently.
EDGE: Westbrook
Image
Durant used to have a squeaky clean image, one who could be an ambassador of the sport for years to come. But, he went on a rant during the 2015 All-Star Weekend as he grew tired of the media that started with his withdrawal from Team USA in 2014.
“To be honest, man, I’m only here talking to y’all because I have to,” Durant said. “So I really don’t care. Y’all not my friends. You’re going to write what you want to write. You’re going to love us one day and hate us the next. That’s a part of it. So I just learn how to deal with y’all.”
When he moved to the Warriors, his image took a huge hit as many believed that he took the easy way out by joining a championship-ready team, one that beat his own Thunder and reached the Finals after winning a record 73 regular-season games. Rather than stay in OKC to continue building a championship team with the Thunder, Durant left for their enemy.
In the 2016 NBA Finals between the Warriors and the Cavaliers, Durant showed himself to be equal, if not the superior player in the series, to James. He won his first championship and took the series by the horns en route to winning the Finals MVP award. The discussions afterward were of Durant’s status as perhaps the best player in the game today.
But then, just a few months after winning the championship, Durant took to Twitter to answer a fan who wanted to know why he left OKC. Unfortunately, he thought he was using his fake account at the time.
@KDTrey5 man I respect the hell outta you but give me one legitimate reason for leaving okc other than getting a championship
— CJ cash (@ColeCashwell) September 18, 2017
“He didn’t like the organization or playing for Billy Donovan,” Durant replied. “His roster wasn’t that good, it was just him and Russ.
“Imagine taking Russ off that team, see how bad they were. KD can’t win a championship with those cats.”
He soon deleted the reply but it was too late as the fan already took a screenshot. The backlash was huge and Durant finally admitted to it.
Westbrook, on the other hand, has had a contentious relationship with the media since he entered the league. In a roundtable discussion on SI.com, Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck and The Athletic Bay Area’s Marcus Thompson say that Westbrook is the toughest player to interview.
“Among prominent players, it’s Russell Westbrook—by a mile,” Beck said. “But I think that’s obvious, even to the casual fan. You can see it in every press conference or post-practice scrum. He just oozes contempt for the media, or at least for the interview process. His answers are often clipped and condescending, frequently defensive, and occasionally hostile.”
During his time with Durant in a Thunder uniform, Westbrook’s reputation was protected by the shadow of his more popular teammate. But, after Durant’s exit, he's had the spotlight all to himself. The fans and the media took his side as the “aggrieved party in the relationship.” His MVP run with the triple-double record made him all the more likable with fans, and the media made sure he smelled like roses with every triple-double achievement.
Westbrook agreed to a 10-year contract with Jordan Brand in September 2017 to become its biggest name and top endorser. Later that month, Westbrook signed a five-year contract extension worth $205 million to stay in OKC, hailed as a sign of loyalty to the franchise, the antithesis of what Durant did to the Thunder the year before.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, there is no place I would rather be than Oklahoma City,” said Westbrook. “I am so honored to have the opportunity to continue my career here with the Thunder.”
These days, Westbrook is leading the charge of a Thunder team that is aiming for a championship.
The image reversal could not be more apparent. As Durant’s image took a hit, Westbrook’s became more acceptable; likable even. Durant, meanwhile, has scaled back on his media presence as he shares the stage with three other All-Stars. He may still be one of the best players in the game, but he’s not as prominent as he used to be.
EDGE: Westbrook
Conclusion
These two All-Stars have Hall-of-Fame written all over their careers and they are sure to garner more accolades over the course of their basketball lifetimes.
Had Durant stayed with OKC, we would not have seen the emergence of Westbrook as one of the top five players in the NBA. He has grown into the leadership role vacated by his former teammate while becoming a more well-rounded individual.
At this point in their careers, if these two were to retire right now, Westbrook eclipses Durant’s legacy but only by a hair.
Should Durant and the Warriors win the championship again, he will most certainly take the lead in the legacy race. A second title and another Finals MVP will not only cement Durant’s status as one of the best in league annals, but it will also improve his reputation with fans and the media. Winning erases a lot of bad publicity.
But, if Westbrook leads OKC to a championship this year or the next, then the gap between the two players will get even wider with the Thunder point guard in the lead.
Westbrook is already one of the best players of all time. A championship ring will only serve to improve his ranking among the best ever.
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