Westbrook is open about pushing Murray in new Nuggets role

DENVER—If Jesse Palmer was around and there were roses in the room for first impressions, Russell Westbrook would’ve scored a flower as the future Hall of Famer infused his scent into the Denver Nuggets on Thursday at Ball Arena.

The championship-chasing Westbrook signed with the title-winners of two seasons ago in hopes of adding a final box to his lengthy CV. In coming to Colorado, Westbrook was pretty open about being in a different chapter of his life than where he was when competing for MVPs. The 35-year-old point guard on a minimum contract was graceful, willing and most of all pretty happy—which is a lot more than could be said about the 27-year-old star guard of the Nuggets Jamal Murray who just signed a $208 million extension. Murray was curt, not very open about his giant contract or the Nuggets failures of a season ago and was happier to talk MMA.

It’s this contrast and flow between these two that will determine a lot of the Nuggets season. How will Westbrook integrate into the Nuggets system? Can Murray play next to Russ? And most importantly, can the Blue Arrow return to form?

All these questions are ones Westbrook seemingly answered in one soundbite.

“My job is to be able to push Jamal to be the best he can be, and play the highest level he can, he’s an unbelievable player and he still has so much room to get better and in a lot of areas and I’m grateful to be able to be here to be able to help him along the journey,” Westbrook said. “And vice versa, always open and understanding and be able to learn from other guys as well, because that’s how you expand your game, that’s how you stay around longer and I’m grateful and looking forward to the opportunity.”

Westbrook is in Denver thanks to some heavy suggestion from three-time MVP Nikola Jokic. The Nuggets signed the veteran as a free agent after the Utah Jazz traded for him from the Los Angeles Clippers only to waive him. Funny enough, the Jazz did the same thing in cutting Westbrook after a trade from the Lakers two years before, which resulted in the Nuggets getting Reggie Jackson. The Nuggets don’t expect Westbrook to be the star he once was but star in his role, unlike Jackson who was merely just fine. The series of transactions also means the Nuggets are not the first to pick Westbrook over Jackson at the point guard position. Nor are the Nuggets the lone recent champion to lose Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and add Westbrook the same summer.

But Westbrook can do something Jackson didn’t which is seriously threaten youngsters Christian Braun and Julian Strawther for playing time at the two-guard. And it’s not necessarily true that Westbrook is a better player than Jackson at this point in their career but he is somebody Michael Malone will value more. While peeping for playing time at the two and for sure backing up Murray, Westbrook provides experience and a pedigree to the whole roster that frankly only Jokic and few others have ever had while wearing the Pickaxes.

“I’ve met with Russ quite a bit, great conversations, just have so much respect for his body of work. The only thing that he hasn’t accomplished is winning an NBA championship, that’s the only thing missing from a very impressive resume and he saw something in this team this group of players this franchise where he wanted to be a part of that and that speaks to what we have going on here,” Malone said. “Russ was in the gym yesterday and there was just a different energy, can’t explain it, but it’s just his voice, his leadership, his intensity, his competitive spirit I think are all things that are not only going to help this team but I think he’s going to really help individual players kind of achieve their potential and push them to be the best that they can be. So I love that he’s here, I think Russell Westbrook first ballot Hall of Famer, I love guys that bring it every single night and that’s what he’s done every game he’s ever played in.”

Westbrook was the 2016-17 MVP and is a nine-time All-NBA selection, with nine All-Star Game trips, two scoring titles and he has already been named to the NBA’s 75 best players of all time list. The former UCLA Bruin has been in the league for 16 years and has bounced between five franchises, with his most legendary stint coming for the Oklahoma City Thunder. It’s for the Nuggets division rival that Westbrook won his MVP and hit a famous buzzer-beater in Denver three to cap the first of his four unreal triple-double averaging seasons. But that was a rare deep shot for Westbrook who is one of 269 players to attempt 2,000 threes in his career and his percentage is 268th. Those shooting issues have really come to light as Brodie’s athleticism has declined. As told by his more recent playoff failures and his bouncing around the league a bit.

“We think he’s going to bring so much to the table as far as uh energy athleticism,” Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth said.”Early signs are maybe he might shoot it a little bit better than people expect him to, watching him shooting the gym it’s, definitely not going to be something he depends on a lot but that’ll be a great benefit if he can you know have some good three-point shooting games. I think you’re bringing a first-ballot Hall of Famer that’s a winner that competes and I think he’s going to push a lot of gods around here.

The guy that he’s pushing most, that only Westbrook seemed open in talking about, is Murray. And he has a past with the Blue Arrow, one that includes the two squabbling in competition and showing fire for each other. Now each has to channel the energy for a more cohesive use, which is Westbrook’s real goal.

“I think this time of year everybody’s gonna say they wanna win a championship, everybody’s gonna say the same thing,” Westbrook said. “It’s not like live or die, to be honest. I love playing the game of basketball. I love having fun. I love using this platform to do other things. Winning a championship is very difficult and a lot of things have to go your way. I think as long as we as a team put our best foot forward then we can live with the results and if that’s the championship, then I’m grateful for that. And if it’s not, I’m also grateful for the opportunity and be able to learn through a process you may not be able to encounter for years.”

Westbrook’s lone trip to the NBA Finals came in his fourth season all the way back in 2012 alongside Kevin Durant. Since blowing a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference Finals to the 2016 Warriors, Westbrook’s teams have gone 1-7 in playoff series with the lone win coming in a bubble series where the guard missed four games and they were subsequently gentlemanly swept by the Lakers. After 11 seasons in OKC, he was thought to be a solution for James Harden in Houston and LeBron James in Los Angeles. Neither worked. But he did show some signs of success as a role player for the Kawhi Leonard and Paul George-led Clippers though his second season was a pretty big disaster once Harden joined the fun. Still, the last two seasons Westbrook has accepted he’s no longer than main billing next to Durant, Harden or James but instead he’s in a backseat. No longer can he beef with another guard like he did with Jackson in OKC now he has to mend fences with Murray who needs to be the star.

“I think everybody knows what Russ brings to the table and the type of energy and passion he plays with,” Murray said. “He’s brought that everywhere he’s gone, he’s gonna bring leadership here as well. 
So I think he’s gonna be really good for us. He’s excited to get it going, obviously, this is our first time seeing each other, so it’s exciting to set foot on the court and get things rolling.”

Last season Westbrook played in 68 games, starting 11, and he averaged 22.5 minutes, 11.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists a night. He shot just 27% from three but still puts some pressure on the rim and is a decent defender at 6-foot-4 thanks to his high motor. But the Nuggets are without their third and fifth-most deep-ball shooting players from a season ago on a team that shot fewer threes than just about anyone—and nobody really wants Russ shooting those shots. But he can get out in transition and it’s a slow pace that has hampered the Nuggets at times in the past.

Westbrook’s pure speed comes in contrast to nearly every player in the Jokic era, who have been slow or been told to slow in order to play a methodical style. Watching the once hyper-athletic triple-double God play with the now-brainiac triple-double God is a fun prospect, probably something Jokic thought of when he advocated for Russ. While the realities of what Russ has been and could do to this team are scary; if he brings this positive attitude and can get just a bit more from a very surly Murray then Westbrook will have earned more than a rose but Nuggets fans’ hearts.

“I don’t know if I’m public enemy number one (in Denver,)” Westbrook said. “Over the course of my career, I’ve been booed a lot but I take it as a kind of respect. When people boo you, they understand it’s a level of respect. If people don’t say anything, then you should be worried. I’m grateful now to be a part (of the Nuggets,) of the loud and yell and scream, and my job is to make them (Nuggets fans) scream louder and have fun and enjoy the games.”