While Portland Trail Blazers star point guard Damian Lillard wasn't surprised Russell Westbrook got traded by the Oklahoma City Thunder, he didn't expect the former MVP to land on the Houston Rockets with James Harden.
Lillard had an idea Westbrook was going to be on the move after the Thunder traded Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers. However, the Blazers All-Star admits he was surprised when he saw Russ was going to the Rockets.
Article Continues Below“I mean, Paul George was traded, then I think (Jerami) Grant got traded to Denver … once I started seeing real pieces of the team starting to get moved around, I figured either he was next and they were starting over or he was going to tell them, you know, I don’t want to be a part of a complete rebuild,” Lillard told Jason Quick of The Athletic.
“So I’m not going to say I was surprised, but I didn’t expect him to go to Houston.”
Damian Lillard and the Blazers defeated Russell Westbrook, Paul George and the Thunder in the first round of the 2019 playoffs in five games. It was pretty much after that defeat Westbrook and George seemingly knew their time in OKC had to end, as it was yet another first round exit for the two superstars.
The Rockets now have two MVPs in their backcourt in Westbrook and James Harden. Everyone in the basketball world is curious to see how the two ball-dominant guards will fit together.
The Portland-Houston games are going to be fun in 2019-20. Lillard and C.J. McCollum vs. Westbrook and Harden is must-see television.