Russell Westbrook at his best was a force
From 2010-11 to 2019-20 Westbrook racked up nine All-Star appearances, nine All-NBA selections, three seasons averaging a triple-double, and one MVP award. That run covered Westbrook’s age 22 season to age 31 season and represents most players’ prime.
What made Westbrook such a dominant force over that stretch was his ability to get to the rim and finish, draw fouls, and rebound at an elite level for a guard. However, Westbrook was not a player without flaws.
Over his most productive stretch, Westbrook still averaged 4.3 turnovers a game and only converted 30.9-percent of his 3-point attempts. The overall package, for many years, made Westbrook out to be an elite player, even if he had a few warts.
Westbrook was able to offset his deficiencies by getting to the rim, where he took 34.8-percent of his shots and drawing shooting fouls, and then hitting his free throws. Lay-ups and free throws are two of the three most valuable shots, which made Westbrook’s overall offensive profile a plus.
Rampaging to the rim was the basis of Westbrook’s game but he was also one of the league’s best assist artists. Over the aforementioned ten-season span, Westbrook posted an assist percentage of 44.3-percent and three times led the league in the metric.
The final key to Westbrook’s prime was that he became an elite rebounder for a guard. Earlier in this run, Westbrook was simply an average rebounder, snagging 5.0 rebounds per game from 2010-11 to 2013-14.
However, in 2014-15 something clicked for Westbrook and he began rebounding at a rate that made him look more like a power forward and less like a point guard. From 2014-15 to 2019-20 Westbrook averaged 9.2 rebounds a game, a mark that would rank in the top-20 this season.
For a decade Westbrook’s combination of scoring, passing, and rebounding made him an elite do it all player that was able to single-handedly carry a team. This is the Westbrook that the Wizards were hoping they were acquiring but as this season has shown, they might have been three seasons too late.