Thursday, September 30th, 2010 at 8:00 am  |  87 responses

Top 50: Russell Westbrook, no. 24

The definitive ranking of the NBA’s best players.

by Todd Spehr

It was symbolism personified. Roughly an hour before the Thunder’s Game 6 match-up with the Lakers in the West first round last season, a determined media scrum was fixated on one thing: Kevin Durant. His stall is in the far left corner of OKC’s locker room, and no less than a dozen reporters were within close proximity, asking him questions ranging from Ron Artest to the kids who hang near his driveway to the growing bond between his team and his city. Two seats to the right sat Russell Westbrook, who was taking in some game film all by his lonesome, the spillover of media from Durant’s stall threatening to invade his space. A prominent writer/TV personality stopped by briefly, there was an exchanging of small talk, and he then went back to Durant. They always do. Unfazed, Westbrook went back to watching film.

Arguably Oklahoma City’s most effective player in that Lakers series (and unarguably their most efficient), Westbrook’s transformation from 9-minutes-per-game freshmaRussell Westbrookn at UCLA just three years ago to one of the League’s young stars is nothing short of remarkable. For observant folk, there’s a unique correlation between Westbrook’s place on this list and the amount of players who are selected to play in the All-Star Game every year. Yes, Westbrook is that good, even if he seems destined to remain under Durant’s suddenly immense shadow, a position Westbrook appears to be more than happy in.

One can’t talk about Westbrook without talking about his most important summer – not this one gone by, where he broke open games for Team USA at the World Championships with regularity, but the one that preceded it, in 2009. Thunder general manager Sam Presti asked Westbrook to participate in the summer league with hopes that the athletically gifted yet sometimes erratic rookie could further learn the point guard position. So Westbrook played – in Orlando, in Las Vegas. The Thunder sent out coaches regularly to his Los Angeles home to run him through extensive workouts. Westbrook attended a Team USA mini-camp. Then, perhaps most importantly, that August the Thunder hired Maurice Cheeks, a controlled point guard if there ever was, as an assistant coach. Oklahoma City’s intentions weren’t exactly subtle.

What followed was maturation. Westbrook found himself in the top 10 in the League for assists, including 28 games in double-figures, and nightly walked the tightrope that every (young) point walks of best knowing when to pass and when to score. He’s 21, and he’s learning.

Westbrook certainly isn’t the prototypical point guard, but for today’s game, he’s about right. Abnormally athletic – USA coach Mike Krzyzewski called him one of the elite athletes in the world this summer – and explosive, Westbrook is just as effective as a scorer as he is a playmaker. That’s the nature of the position now. The paint is where he makes his living, but he’s also developed something of a go-to move – his pull-up jumper with the defender on his heels, praying he doesn’t blow by.

Westbrook’s playoff debut was somewhat surprising – the bright lights didn’t faze, the Lakers had to adjust to him, and there were stretches where he was the best player on the floor (notably in parts of Games 3 and 4).

That carried over to this summer, where in the Team USA pecking order he began somewhere behind Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo and finished somewhere in front of them; games were changed when he entered, rims were rocked when he leapt, the crunch time minutes belonging to him. The end result was a gold medal and Westbrook certainly played a part.

It might even be enough to get some reporters to his locker.

SLAMonline TOP 50 PLAYERS OVERALL RANK POSITION RANK
Player Team Position 2010 2009 2010 2009
Ray Allen Celtics SG 50 36 11 10
Gilbert Arenas Wizards SG 49 34 10 9
Lamar Odom Lakers PF 48 33 14 10
John Wall Wizards PG 47 NR 13 NR
OJ Mayo Grizzlies SG 46 46 9 12
Al Horford Hawks C 45 NR 6 NR
Jason Kidd Mavs PG 44 45 12 10
Joakim Noah Bulls C 43 NR 5 NR
LaMarcus Aldridge Blazers PF 42 39 13 12
David West Hornets PF 41 31 12 8
Monta Ellis Warriors SG 40 NR 8 NR
Andrew Bogut Bucks C 39 NR 4 NR
Yao Ming Rockets C 38 NR 3 NR
Brandon Jennings Bucks PG 37 NR 11 NR
Zach Randolph Grizzlies PF 36 NR 11 NR
Stephen Curry Warriors PG 35 NR 10 NR
David Lee Warriors PF 34 NR 10 NR
Brook Lopez Nets C 33 NR 2 NR
Gerald Wallace Bobcats SF 32 NR 6 NR
Manu Ginobili Spurs SG 31 29 7 8
Tony Parker Spurs PG 30 15 9 3
Kevin Garnett Celtics PF 29 13 9 3
Rudy Gay Grizzlies SF 28 44 5 9
Josh Smith Hawks PF 27 40 8 13
Andre Iguodala 76ers SG 26 26 6 7
Al Jefferson Jazz PF 25 23 7 7
Russell Westbrook Thunder PG 24 NR 8 NR

Notes
• Rankings are based solely on projected ’10-11 performance.
• Contributors to this list include: Jeremy Bauman, Maurice Bobb, Erildas Budraitis, Sean Ceglinsky, Ben Collins, Bryan Crawford, Sandy Dover, Adam Figman, Manny Maduakolam, Eddie Maisonet, Ryne Nelson, Doobie Okon, Ben Osborne, Charles Peach, Branden Peters, Quinn Peterson, David Schnur, Todd Spehr, Kyle Stack, Adam Sweeney, Dennis Tarwood, Tracy Weissenberg, Lang Whitaker, Eric Woodyard, and Nima Zarrabi.
• Want more of the SLAMonline Top 50? Check out the archive.

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  • The Fresh Prince of Nsam

    Great young player and looks like a great guy to. Wish him the best of luck this year and in the future.

  • The Fresh Prince of Nsam

    And I like ur write up Todd

  • http://thetroyblog.com Teddy-the-Bear

    Brooks better still be on this list…

  • http://thetroyblog.com Teddy-the-Bear

    And people need to cool it on the Rose hype. It’s not that clear-cut who’s better between him and Westbrook. Rose is going to be great but people are acting like he’s unmatchable.

  • The Fresh Prince of Nsam

    I was deceived by DRose play during the WBC while in the other hand I was agreably surprised and impressed by RWestbrook game, especially in crunch time. I think d difference between them right now is that Rose already has “Francise player” status in ChiTown while Westbrook is a 2nd knife in OKC. But right now I’ll take Westbrook over Rose.

  • str8 from samoa

    WHY IS THIS ABOUT ROSE AND WESTBROOK? IMA SAY WESTBROOK!!!HAHA JUST BOUGHT HIS JERSEY YUUUP! I SAID IT!

  • Michael

    WHY ARE YOU WRITING IN CAPS??? IT MAKES YOU SEEM STUPID FOR REAL.

  • http://www.slamonline melvin ely

    @Kap, I’m gonna go back at something you said, re: Westbrook improving at a faster rate than Rose bcoz there’s no pressure on him. I disagree. It depends on the player, some guys just thrive on the pressure, and Rose, I believe, is one of those guys. Being option #1 on the Bulls is going to make him into a special player, and he’ll get far ahead of Russ because of that.

  • tavoris

    Westbrook might have a higher ceiling, but it’s also unlikely that he’ll every surpass Rose’s consistency.

  • TrailBlazing&SportingLisbon

    LOVE his game but better than Iggy, AllJeff, JoshSmiph and so on is a litle too much…next should be Rose, who is better than Russel on offense but worse on D..WHO WAS DA FOOL TALKIN LIKE: “humm, I wonder where Jeff Green is…” lololol…if he was gonna be here it was nº 50 son!!

  • TrailBlazing&SportingLisbon

    lol at teddy he bear…if brooks was to be here it would have been been 20 spots ago, unless everybody lost their mind

  • http://slamonline.com nbk

    @Trailblazing – Brooks has a legitimate place on this list, right around now. He was the best player on Houston last year….and they did finish 42-40 in the west, without a center.

  • http://slamonline.com nbk

    Although I don’t think he is better then Curry or Westbrook.

  • Seven Duece

    I like Westbrooks’ enthusiasm when he plays; looks like he’s really having fun out there. This may be a tad bit too high, but I think we’ll see by the end of the season.

  • Jacob (from Australia)

    Athleticism does not = dunking. Otherwise TFB would be the most athletic people on the planet. Westbrook will flat out kill Rose in terms of pure speed and quickness. But then Rose has him on strength and dunking power. I dunno, it’s pretty close but I’m sick of people automatically assuming being athletic means you’re a dunk champ.

  • TrailBlazing&SportingLisbon

    nbk, I really like Brooks BUT NOBODY CAN PUT HIM AHEAD OF Tony Parker, Curry, Westbrook in his position and Bogut, David Lee, Josh Smiph, AllJeff, Aldridge, Brook Lopez, Ginobili, Iguodala, etc…we gotta keep it real dude…last year he shot like 7 threes per game, total freedom and did really well but ask Houston GM why he didnt offer him an extension…cause in a normal Rockets team like we´ll see this season he wont have the same impact, therefore his salary wont be overvalued, even though I think he can be better with less usage…smart move by Morey.

  • TrailBlazing&SportingLisbon

    Jacob, youre right althleticism is not only jumping higher but Russel´s stronger than Rose, and he shows it specially in DEFENSE and rebounding

  • http://slamonline.com Allenp

    Lisbon, I think Westbrook just understands defense better. He’s been playing great defense longer since that was his role in college.
    Westbrook is way better on defense, but I think the gap is similar on offense with Rose.
    Both players are raw, but Westbrook is really, REALLY raw as a point guard. He’s improving, but he’s not on Rose’s level yet as far as running an offense and team

  • TrailBlazing&SportingLisbon

    i think its bout the same the gap on O and D between those 2, that, the athletic ability and the style of their PointGuard game(not really BORN PGs) being similar leads to all these comparisons…I honestly think they´re not that far apart, Rose´s got some court vision and passing problems although hes a franshise player. if they were 6foot6, with better jumpers and less athleticism they would be like Brandon Roy, an awsome playmaking SG. at 6´3 they´re awsome PGs with things to improve.

  • http://slamonline.com nbk

    @Lisbon damn man wow, i can’t even believe how wrong i was haha. Good points I agree he has no business on this list now. But I do believe he should be somewhere in the late 30′s early 40′s. But again my fault your completely right he has no place above the players you mentioned.

  • http://slamonline.com nbk

    @Allen & Lisbon – The difference between the two in my eyes is enormous at PG (on offense). Derrick Rose runs an offense, and controls the tempo of a game better then most veterans in the league. Russel Westbrook is basically a SG playing out of position on offense that doesn’t know how to control the pace. Luckily he plays for Oklahoma City so if his attack opportunities detereorate he can rely on Kevin Durant to create offense, that hides a ton of his weaknesses.

  • Jessdogg

    Is he wearing Kobe’s shoes?

  • TLJ

    NBK that is a ridiculous statement. You have the two completely reversed. Rose is the 2 playing PG because of height. He doesn’t set up teammates or run the offense. He beats guys 1 on 1 in iso. He had a horrible number of assists at the rim and under 10 feet last year. He was barely Top 20 at assists at the rim whereas Russ was Top 5.

    The correct statement is that Rose is a better scorer, not better at running an offense. I can’t believe you’ve seen enough of both to comment because 1 entirely runs an offense (Russ) and the other doesn’t (Rose).

  • http://slamonline.com Allenp

    Nah TLJ you are confused. Westbrook was a two in college.
    Assists at the rim are a byproduct of passing off at the last minute, which actually supports NBK’s claim that rose is better at running a team. When you run a team you may or may not get a ton of assists depending on the type of style the team plays.
    Just like on Team USA, Rose ran the squad, he wasn’t jsut penetrating willy nilly in hopes of creating something. And I’ve watched a lot of both of them.

  • TLJ

    I know exactly what Westbrook played in college. That does not have any impact on how he plays now.

    Rose runs almost exclusively ISO plays and had horrible numbers for assists at the rim and under 10 feet last year. Rose does not run the offense to the same level Westbrook does now. That Russell only played a handful of college games at point has ZERO bearing on how, and most importantly, what he plays now.

    And the reason Rose doesn’t get a ton of assists is because he’s not a great passer and looks for his shots first. Westbrook is easily the better passer and is better at breaking down a D and getting the ball to the open man. Rose is better at breaking down the D and getting his own shot from it. And that’s exactly how the two play for the most part.

    It’s silly reading comments like “Westbrook played more 2 in college so of course Rose runs the offense better”. Really? Where the comparison. Because Rose gets the ball and runs ISO a majority of the time, and if he doesn’t beat his man he passes it back out. Great way to run an offense.

  • http://slamonline.com Allenp

    I disagree.
    The Bulls ran a lot of top weave plays and high pick and rolls last year. They also liked to get the ball to Deng off down screens, with Rose make the pass. I saw him do all of that well.
    I didn’t say Rose was a great passer, I said he’s a better passer than Westbrook and he better understands tempo, pace and all the other things that go into playing the point.
    I pointed out what Westbrook did in college to note that your point that “Rose is the 2 playing the point because of his height” is contradicted by the fact that Westbrook actually WAS a two. In college, you know. He was switched to the one in the NBA because his team felt that was a better slot for him.
    In watching Bulls games, I have not seen Rose run a lot of iso. I’ve seen him attempt to run the set offense, and then when they Bulls couldn’t get a quality shot because their lack of a low post threat allowed defenders to be overly aggressive on the perimeter he would be forced to create a shot for himself or others.
    But, if that’s not what you saw, that’s not what you saw.

  • bashmo

    People arguing about Westbrook/Rose: Consider that Westbrook plays with the leading scorer of the league in Durant, and DRose’s highest scorer after him is of course Luol Deng, at maybe 17ppg

    Westrbook is a better passer and defender than rose, However Rose is an overall better scorer, jumpshooter, etc.

    Theyre about the same level wen u come down to it

  • http://slamonline.com nbk

    Westbrook is not near the distributor/creator rose is, and no joke, its not even a debate. Ya’ll must not watch both guys very often.

  • TLJ

    That’s right NBK. That’s why assists at the rim is worthless stats. I mean, the NBA leaders last year were just garbage players.

    1. Nash
    2. DWill
    3. Rando
    4. LBJ
    5. CP3
    6. Baron
    7. Kidd
    8. Westbrook
    9. Harris
    10. Mo Williams

    It’s a horrible least and is no way a measure of good passing. That’s why DRose can rank 35th in that stat. Because that stat’s worthless.

    He just didn’t want to show off his passing skills. We all know he’s a great passer. He just HAS to be. He was picked #1 overall and plays for the Bulls. How can he NOT be a great passer?

  • skd

    sorry but some of yall must not watch enough games is right, Westbrook is garbage at setting people up and running an offense. Most of his assists come from being caught in the air and finding someone on the double. I would hardly say that makes you a great passer.

    Rose doesnt play with Kevin Durant. Im sorry but he is a whole level above Westbrook.

  • http://google c_cantrell

    guys come on lol i mean yal seriously believe that rose is a better passer than westbrook? yal go find a new hobby

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  • Russell_fan

    A personal favorite, he outplayed both Billups and Rose in the world, a future star for sure.

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  • jane

    LOVE russell westbrook! i think he’s one of the top 5 PGs and he brings about an energy that is infectious. good work ethic, humility, and talent=win

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