WB has repeatedly shown this year that take-over capability. We know he likes to shoot. Now imagine him playing with the Bulls where he is the clear-cut #1 option. Check OKC's record without Durant last year.
Sorry, I can't imagine that. It's not the same thing to me. And until I see in the playoffs, I won't believe it.
The thing about Durant is that even though he scores so much, the OKC offense is still more reliant on Westbrook than Durant. And OKC is an elite offensive team despite having 3 pretty bad offensive starters and only James Harden who can really create for others. Durant is the focal point of the offense but not the person who the offense is run through, if that makes any sense.
Yeah, I would agree with that. The thing is even with those 3 guys being that bad on offense, I don't see the same double teams on Westbrook as I do on Rose. I would just like to see how Westbrook would do being the focal point offensively with more double teams thrown at him.
Well, he needs to be put in that situation. But right now, he's with OKC so you can only judge him by what he's doing now. It's like saying you can't imagine Lin doing what he does now in GSW or Houston. Or when people saying Kobe couldn't win without Shaq. Well, different circumstances breed different results. Fact of the matter is, the guy is a stud. That's what they said about Kobe when Shaq left. It amazes me how much criticism Westbrook gets for doing his job. His job is to score just as much as pass on that team. Although durant is arguably the best scorer in the league, he's not a LBJ or Kobe that can get any shot he wants v. any defense (though he's improving). Durant averages MORE TURNOVERS THAN ASSISTS. He NEEDS a guy like Westbrook to do the heavy lifting in terms of handling the ball, making plays, while he "finishes." But when he's unable to get open, it's up to WB to create FOR HIMSELF. It's like people think he's a PG, and he should become a Chris Paul or Steve Nash. No, OKC needs him to score. For OKC to be as good as they are now, WB has to do what he's doing. If he averages 15 points and 10 assists, they wouldn't be the same team. And they wouldn't be the offensive team that they are.
No, I can't judge him by what he's doing now because he's not in that situation. I said that.. I can't imagine him being as good as rose is as a #1 option until I actually see it with him being on another team where it's his team. That's not a knock to him or anything. He's a great player. OK? They said that about Kobe. What's your point? I don't think you can compare both situations. Kobe did it, he turned out to be one of the 10 greatest players in the history of the game. I don't know if Westbrook is THAT good, but nonetheless, I'm not doubting that he can't do it. It's just a matter of me seeing it before I can really compare him to Rose equally in terms of what he would be able to do with his own team. I agree with that and that's probably why I would wait to compare him and Rose with what he can do with his own team. That's all I've said. I'm not criticizing him at all.
Westbrook and Rose are very easy to compare and Rose is clearly better. In the long run, it's possible WB might surpass Rose because I think he has more growth potential. But I doubt it.
And? Rose has also been out this season for significant parts of time. Last year it was pretty even between Rose and Westbrook.
My point exactly. Despite having Durant to share the "scoring" load, WB's offensive responsibilities for OKC are still heavy, just as much as Rose's. Even when Rose was healthy to start the year, you can see he's doing less of the heavy lifting. There is a reason the Bulls have been able to win 70% of their games without Rose this year. The great thing about WB is that he's getting better from last year. This guy is on an upward trajectory. Let's see if Rose can resume that trajectory when he's healthy.
It's not that though. He doesn't see the same defenses that Rose does. It's different when you're by yourself and you're the main focal point of the defense. There's nothing that you can say or bring up that will change that until he actually performs with his own team. The Bulls really have played an easy schedule thus far and so I don't know if you can really use that 70% of wins to determine how much Rose means to his team. They got blown out by Memphis without him and also lost to Boston without him, all of the other wins were against below .500 teams.
stop saying hes by himself. just because hes not playing with a superstar you act like his teammates are nothing and defenses can just ignore them and focus on rose. its not like boozer hasnt been an all-star, and deng isnt one this year. the bulls have one of the best offenses in the league.
Look at how Westbrook scores. Is he dependent on anybody to score the ball? No. Can he beat people off the dribble? Yes. Can he create his own shot? Yes. Can he get to the FT line? Yes. Does he want the ball in crunch time? Yes. And he's proven it. So players who have all of these skills can be a #1 option. I know KD hasn't missed many games, but he missed 4 last year. OKC went 3-1. WB put up 27 points, 7 dimes, 6 boards (ALL ROAD GAMES mind you) without KD. And that was his FIRST year as a legit star. This guy can have his own team. And you put him on the Bulls and let Thibs groom and improve his discipline and maturity even more? The sky is the limit. Brooks isn't a great coach. A lot of the things WB went through with the criticisms last year, he had to grow and mature on his own. This guy is good in OKC. Or anywhere for that matter. And he's bringing his game up another notch this year once again.
Like I said, it's tough to see him being as good as rose with the defenses Rose gets. You can't really predict things like this until you see it.
I'm with you that Rose is clearly better. Stats don't tell the whole story; observation must be added in. I've watched both guys extensively since they came into the NBA, but it was the World Games in 2010 that really keyed me to the idea that Westbrook may end up a better player at some point. It'll be fun watching these two "non-pure" PGs for years to come. I'm all for this kind of impurity. :grin:
Westbrook plays with alot of fire, but he can be a knucklehead, sometimes. Though, I wouldn't have minded him running right over Mo Williams.
