Russell Westbrook was traded to the Utah Jazz during the trade deadline and then bought out by Utah to seek out teams to play for. It seemed like it was only a matter of time until the other Los Angeles team scooped him up. The Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, and Washington Wizards were all rumored to want Russ but ultimately it was the Clippers who he chose to play with.

Russ has some history with L.A. but more importantly history with Paul George. He and PG linked up in Oklahoma City. PG13 and Russ played two seasons together but each season lost in the first round (that’s a “bad shot”). Despite just the two seasons and quick playoff exits, PG had his best season in that last OKC year, averaging 28 ppg and getting lots of recognition for the MVP award. After that season both players moved on to different teams. George joined Kawhi in Los Angeles and Russ went to Houston, Washington, and the Lakers. A lot has happened since the last time these two played together so who knows if it’ll bring them a championship.

A championship is the goal for 30 NBA teams every season (kinda sorta). The Clippers went all in for that goal in 2019 when they brought in Kawhi and PG. They mortgaged any sort of future that the team could think of to acquire two of the best wing players in this league. That was four years ago and with three seasons together they have one conference final appearance to show for it. Both players have missed a substantial amount of time, especially Kawhi who didn’t play at all last year. Along with the recently destructed Brooklyn Nets, this team hasn’t been able to live up to the huge expectations that they were met with.

With PG and Kawhi the team shouldn’t struggle like they do but they can’t help the injuries that they have been plagued with. The supporting cast around them might be the best the team has been able to put together. With Ivica Zubac being a decent big man and adding Mason Plumlee to take some of the load off of him. They have a crazy amount of wing players all over the roster they can throw in to get buckets or defend. The point guard position has been a glaring need since 2019. They have tried Patrick Beverley, Lou Williams, Eric Bledsoe, Reggie Jackson, and most recently John Wall. All good players but some were past their prime and some were just not that helpful for a contender like the Clippers. Jackson was the best of the bunch with his great playoff run in the conference final trip the team had.

This is where Westbrook comes in. The decline of Russ has been well documented we all know the struggle he had playing for the Lakers. People like myself have every right to question how in their right mind do the Clippers sign him after seeing how poorly he played these past two seasons. I am very skeptical this move will be a positive rather than a further derailment for a team that hasn’t fulfilled its championship aspirations.

Russ was last productive in 2020-21 playing for the Wizards. The key on that team was the need for someone to initiate the offense and push the tempo. The Lakers needed the tempo pushed, but Lebron is a primary ball-handler and they had zero shooters on the Lakers. We all know Russ ain’t a great shooter but if you surround him with shooters and defenders there is a recipe for a bit of success there. Washington was just an eighth seed but he averaged a triple-double and was the most important player on that team. On the Clippers he won’t need to average a triple-double or be depended on to guard at a high level, he won’t even be guarded by the best defenders. Having the two wings on his side all he has to do is facilitate and maybe he can find that explosiveness he used to have. The clippers have tons of shooters. They moved Luke Kennard but added Eric Gordon and Bones Hyland to a roster that already has Norman Powell, Robert Covington, Marcus Morris, Nic Batum, and Terance Mann. That is more than enough for Westbrook to work with.

The Clippers have been using Terence Mann at the starting point guard spot recently, so Russ could still come off the bench and establish a rhythm with a second unit that is filled with talent. I have my concerns but after looking into it a bit further I have hope this could help Kawhi have another deep playoff run and potentially win his third ring with a third different team, barring any injuries of course. The west is going to be tough but if the duo is healthy this team is deep enough to have a say in who will be fighting for the championship. I definitely think that Russ hears all the stuff he had to deal with while playing with Lebron and will have extra motivation to play harder and that could ultimately be a good thing or a bad thing for the Clippers only time will tell.