Russell Westbrook About his Future With the Rockets: “I’ll Fit in Perfectly”

The biggest news of the day in the NBA is Russell Westbrook’s introduction as the new player of the Houston Rockets. The former MVP and one of the rare guys who created the history of the game caused an abnormal hype, and his appearance as the Rockets’ player drew massive attention.

After 11 seasons, Westbrook had to leave Oklahoma City, and try to reach the ring at another place. He didn’t hide the fact that saying goodbye to OKC happened to be very hard for him.

“It’s tough,” Westbrook said. “It’s something that will stay with me the rest of my life. Because I basically grew up there, in Oklahoma City. Eighteen years old in Oklahoma City and the people, the organization, never done me wrong.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0oLRG0yuoZo

His trade came after Paul George’s decision to jump to LA and team up with Kawhi Leonard at the Clippers. That marked the end of Thunder’s aspiration for winning the title, and on the other hand, a chance for Houston to change something in their locker room. Chris Paul and James Harden didn’t go along very well, and the chemistry between the two superstars slowly began to deteriorate.

With Westbrook available, there was no time for the Rockets to think. He had to be taken before some other team comes up.

Many are concerned about Harden’s and Westbrook’s cooperation on the floor because they both are the undisputed leaders of the court. But the 2017 MVP thinks that there won’t be any troubles. He already has several reasons to back up his point of view.

“I’ll fit right in, personally,” Westbrook told the reporters. “Floor spread, it gives me the opportunity to attack, penetrate, kick. Defensively, it’ll give me an opportunity to switch and guard and rebound at a high level. Push the break, get us out on the break. A lot of different things.”

These two guys played together in Oklahoma from 2010 until 2010, when Harden left for Houston. Back then Westbrook was an All-Star, and Harden won the Sixth Man of the Year award. After the split, both won the MVP awards, one after another in 2017 and 2018, establishing themselves as two of the most lethal and versatile players the league has ever seen.

Westbrook stressed out the fact that his friendship with Harden goes way back in the past. Also, he is sure that because of this, both of them will be easier to accept changes in their game once they begin to play together.

“We’ve been friends for many, many years,” Westbrook said of Harden. “Since I was 10, actually. So we’ve played with each other in Oklahoma City, and to be able to win something, you’ve got to be willing to sacrifice some parts of your game, and we both understand that.”

Russell Westbrook: “Being able to come here and reunite with James [Harden] is another great chapter in my life.” pic.twitter.com/JAyXikwwh4

— NBA TV (@NBATV) July 26, 2019

The Rockets franchise is desperate to make that final push in the playoffs and reach the big finals. In recent years they were very close, but somehow the Golden State Warriors always found a way to eliminate the guys from Texas.

In 2018, Houston missed a historic chance to eliminate the Dub Nation, as they had a 3-2 lead in the series and the last game in Toyota Center. Chris Paul’s injury ruined everything in that series, and the Warriors came back, winning the title afterward.

The Rockets were not in any of the title talks before Westbrook’s arrival. But since that happened, they are once again in among the top 5 contenders, with the Clippers, Lakers and the Bucks ahead of them at the moment.

Having two MVP’s, former coach of the year and a bunch of other guys with enormous potential is an excellent foundation for the future. What is now the next step towards the ring is finding and creating positive chemistry, which will guide this team through adversity.