Following two months of anticipation, reigning league MVP Russell Westbrook officially signed his supermax five-year, $205 million contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

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Prior to that, there was some growing chatter that he would have considered taking his talents to the Los Angeles Lakers next offseason to join some other superstars, according to Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post.

Some around the league had been openly wondering if, say, Westbrook, George and James would all try to go to the Lakers, or if some equally eye-popping formation of stars would take place. All of that was predicated, however, on Westbrook doing what seemed like the logical thing at the time: waiting until next July to see where his new Oklahoma City co-stars, George and Anthony, decided to do, and making his own decision on his future then.

There are some obvious connections for Westbrook given that he grew up in the nearby area and attended UCLA for two seasons. In fact, these rumors had persisted over the last several years around the 28-year-old whenever his contract situation was being discussed.

The fact that he hadn't signed the new extension started to build that chatter once again that he would take the route of waiting until after this upcoming season to make a decision on his future with the Thunder. Westbrook's sudden move to sign the extension could have a major influence in changing the course of what may unfold in free agency across the league.

Although the six-time All-Star may now be out of the question for the Lakers, there still remains the possibility of either James or George making the jump next summer.