In just a few short years, Russell Westbrook has gone from one of the NBA’s best and most unique players to one who is largely seen as a negative asset.
Never mind that he is going to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, that he averaged a triple-double in four out of five seasons or that he is still a good player, even if he has declined.
The Los Angeles Lakers have been trying to trade him for the past six months or so, but he has very little, if any, value on the market. His humongous contract, which will pay him about $47 million this coming season, is seen as perhaps the biggest reason he lacks value.
Westbrook recently parted ways with his agent, and while talking about the split on a recent podcast, an NBA reporter said that Westbrook seems to be overestimating his value on the trade market.
Via Fadeaway World:
“The Athletic’s Jovan Buha has now provided insight into why it might be difficult for Russ to find a new team and why his relationship with his agent deteriorated on The Athletic NBA Show podcast (starts at 20:16 minutes).
“‘It’s one thing to publically not acknowledge it, but clearly behind the scenes, he’s not realizing, if anyone trades for you, it’s for your contract. And them wanting to get off of money. And get an asset from the Lakers. It is not because they want you to be the face of the franchise, they want you to be the starting point guard. Like, any team that takes him on is facilitating, clearing their cap sheet.’”
Of course, the Lakers are hoping to turn Westbrook into Kyrie Irving via trade, but according to at least one report, the Brooklyn Nets have no willingness to take back Westbrook, which would necessitate a third team getting involved.
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