Russell Westbrook Averaging a Triple Double Is a Losing Formula
The Oklahoma City Thunder master plan for a nightly Russell Westbrook Triple-Double is a strategy guaranteed to fail. Basketball is a team sport.
Let’s start with a little history lesson.
Many NBA fans and all Oklahoma City Thunder fans have heard the comparisons between Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook. In the 1961-62 season for the Cincinnati Royals, Robertson averaged a triple-double in his second season in the NBA.
Similarly, this season Russell Westbrook is out of his mind averaging a triple-double. Any comparison to Oscar Robertson is a compliment of the highest regard. The Big O was the prototype for the modern NBA athletic guard.
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At 6’5″ 205 pounds Robertson had the talent, size and athleticism to dominate and that is exactly what he did. Furthermore, playing in an era where teams shot the ball at an insane rate played right into his wheelhouse.
Rebounds and assists were as plentiful as scoring opportunities for the over-sized PG. The famed triple-double season was Robertson’s second season in the NBA and he played on a team that did not value defense.
The 61-62 Cincinnati Royals finished 43-37; six games above .500 and rated the number one offense in the NBA. They were also rated as one of the worst defenses in the NBA. Consequently, they lost 3-1 to the Detroit Pistons in the Western Division Semifinals. Injuries played a part in their playoff loss, but the fact remains that they lost. The Royals broke a playoff drought that year, but despite Robertson’s best efforts they could not get past the Pistons.
In other words, averaging a triple-double was good enough to make the playoffs but wasn’t good enough to be a winning formula for the team.
Best Player on Planet Earth
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The Thunder did not plan for this season to just be the Russell Westbrook show. Yet, everything management has done and not done since Kevin Durant left smells like laziness.
Lebron James and Russell Westbrook are the only two players in the world who have a legitimate argument for being the best. The talent, heart and playmaking ability of both players make star players like Paul George and Carmelo Anthony seem ordinary.
Westbrook finds himself surrounded by a team that could not make the playoffs unless he or Lebron were on the team. Consequently, Russ has taken the NBA by the throat and channeled his inner Undertaker into a continual Choke Slam throughout this season.
The Oklahoma City Thunder seemed to be blindsided by the departure of Kevin Durant.
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Even if they weren’t, team management has done little to provide Westbrook with any player resembling a sidekick.
Oladipo is a streaky scorer, Roberson is a legitimate candidate for Defensive POY and the interior rotation has been pretty good. However, no player on this team is good enough offensively to take the pressure off Russ. The resulting season has been Billy Donovan riding the Westbrook train as far as it can take him as he overlooks bad team offense.
Where are the Thunder Going?
While the modern NBA is a different league than what Oscar Robertson played in, the team result looks to be the same. Even though The Big O averaged a triple-double and had a legitimate interior scorer to pass to (Bob Boozer) his Cincinnati Royals could not even get to the Western Division Finals.
The Oklahoma City Thunder find themselves on a similar path: middle of the pack in the Western Conference. Given the rise of the Clippers, reloading of Golden State and the Spurs being the Spurs, there isn’t much hope for a one-man show in the Western Conference. Russell Westbrook may be a basketball superman but in the end, he is just one man.
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The unknown in this triple-double season for Westbrook is the potential for roster moves near the All-Star break. This one-man show could suddenly become a dynamic duo once again with the right trade.
Anthony Davis? Demarcus Cousins? There is great potential for a blockbuster trade that will once again prove Sam Presti to be a genius. However, at this point it appears that Presti and Coach Donovan have hitched themselves to a nightly Westbrook triple-double. Unfortunately for Thunder fans, the triple-double show will end in an early playoff exit.
Oscar Robertson After The Triple-Double Show
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If this Thunder season continues as the Triple-Double Show the only logical ending is injury or a first round playoff loss. Russell Westbrook is human (kinda) and he will need rest or at least someone to alleviate the weight of a city on his shoulders.
Everyone knows Robertson ran the league in 1961-62 and that his team fell early in the playoffs. What happened in his next season could be a picture of what’s to come for the Thunder. The good news is the next year, the Cincinnati Royals became more of a team and got one step further in the Playoffs.
They finished with a similar record to the previous year and Robertson nearly averaged a triple-double once again. Not only did the Royals make the Divisional Finals; they came within one game of making the NBA Finals.
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In both seasons, the entire starting five of the Royals averaged double figures in scoring. The positive change in the 1962-63 season can be traced back to a more productive bench.
Keep in mind that the NBA in the early 60’s averaged much more shot volume than today’s NBA. This means that a starting five averaging double figures was not a stretch. In the triple-double season of 61-62, the highest average scorer on the bench was at 7.2 ppg. Yet, the next season when they reached the Conference Finals, the highest average bench scorer was 9.4 ppg. The bench was the key.
Get Westbrook Some Help
The Russell Westbrook Triple-Double Show is an amazing athletic spectacle to behold. It is, however, an unrealistic strategy for winning at a team sport. The majority of the players on the current Thunder roster could be replaced with other average NBA players and the result would be the same.
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Westbrook and his Coach need both a legitimate #2 star and a legitimate bench with a veteran presence. If Oscar Robertson couldn’t get his team past the first round of the playoffs averaging a triple double; Russell Westbrook can’t either.
Thunder games are must-see TV this season and will be that way all year. If Oklahoma City wants to be must-see TV during the playoffs changes must be made. Westbrook averaging a triple-double may be good for the NBA but it is not good for the OKC Thunder.
Billy Donovan is a solid coach who wants to win with team defense and efficient offense. With a few more additions, a few less Westbrook shots and a real #2 option this team can make noise deep in the playoffs. As it stands, the only attention the Thunder will receive will be on the Top 10 highlights in Late Night Sports shows, not in the playoffs.
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