The Oklahoma City Thunder have been surging as of late as they are 9-1 in their last ten games. With them being out of playoff contention for most of the season, they are sitting comfortable in the 8th spot in the Western Conference seeding. Everyone knew that the Thunder would make a run for a playoff spot despite Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook being out due to injury at the beginning of the season. Now that one of two are healthy the Thunder are back in contention to make some noise in the playoffs.
It’s pretty safe to say that the reason for the improvement of the Thunder hinges on the play of Russell Westbrook. For the season, Westbrook is averaging 26 ppg to go along with 8.0 apg and 6.5 rpg. Westbrook is putting up his normal numbers, but the way he has been doing it has been magnificent. In the month of February the Thunder are 10-1, and Westbrook is averaging 29.5ppg, 10.1 apg, and 8.2 rpg and will likely walk away as the Western Conference Player of the Month.
Without the strong play from Westbrook it’s safe to say that the Thunder would be on the outside of the playoff picture. Unlike the other MVP candidates such as Steph Curry, James Harden, Anthony Davis, and LeBron James, Westbrook has only played 43 games out of 57 games. Westbrook may have missed more games than the aforementioned names, but he should be in the discussion for the MVP award.
In the 14 games that Westbrook sat out, the Thunder were an abysmal 4-10. During that time Westbrook and KD were out, but with Durant battling injuries all season, Westbrook has been able to will the Thunder to a playoff berth.
Westbrook may be an enigma to some, but he is just a basketball player that is passionate about winning at all cost. Some say he’s cocky, but so what if he is. After winning the NBA All-Star game MVP, his confidence level is even higher, and he knows that he is one of the best players in the NBA. An already confident Russell Westbrook is already problem, but with a new found assurance it makes him even scarier.
Russell Westbrook may not walk away with the MVP award this season, but he should definitely be in the conversation. After seeing Kevin Durant win the award he knows that he is more than capable of bringing the award home. Will Russell Westbrook be named this year’s MVP? As of now that answer is unknown, but one thing for certain is that he deserves to be considered for the award, regardless of how many games has missed.
