Clippers guard Russell Westbrook Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports

Clippers would be smart to hang on to Russell Westbrook

By Adam Taylor | Last updated 11/18/23

The Los Angeles Clippers finally won their first game of the James Harden era Friday night, and the win coincided with Russell Westbrook's request to come off the bench. The rotation appeared to have more balance, and each star got enough touches to impact the game.

Harden helping his new team to a win could be bad news for the Westbrook's stay in L.A. According to Law Murray of The Athletic, the front office could use any success Harden has in the coming weeks as a reason to explore a Westbrook trade.

"The reality of this move is that Harden was brought in to ultimately replace Westbrook in the case that a partnership between the two players on the floor did not work. While [Tyronn] Lue advocated for Westbrook, the Clippers front office has always preferred a point guard who is a theoretical fit with [Kawhi] Leonard and [Paul] George in terms of size and shooting ability."

Westbrook played well to begin the season, showing signs of being close to the player we saw during his tenure with the Washington Wizards, the best he's looked in recent years. A Los Angeles native, it appeared Westbrook finally found a home with the Clippers after bouncing around the league since leaving the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2019.

As a ball-dominant guard who isn't a perimeter threat, it's hard for Westbrook to slot into just any team, and at 35 years old and with his MVP-level days behind him, no team will build a roster around the aging veteran. His strong start to the season was encouraging for the Clippers, but his fit elsewhere could be more problematic.

The Clippers' performance on Friday night shows their best chance of success is with Westbrook operating as a sixth man. That's a better path to success than trying to find a taker for the former MVP.

It would make more sense to navigate the basketball calendar with two future Hall of Fame ball-handlers, especially if Westbrook fully buys in to his bench role and takes a backseat to Harden and the rest of the starters.

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