Russell Westbrook agrees to 3-year extension with Thunder
Russell Westbrook has agreed to a three-year extension to keep the All-Star point guard with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
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The Oklahoma City Thunder lost one superstar earlier this offseason but made sure it wouldn’t happen again.
Late Wednesday evening, the Thunder agreed to a three-year contract extension with All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of the Vertical.
Wojnarowski reported earlier in the night that there was significant momentum the two sides would be able to come to terms. Westbrook agreed to a three-year deal worth more than $85 million.
Sources: Russell Westbrook is flying to Oklahoma City on Thursday morning, planning to sign a three-year, $85M-plus contract renegotiation.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 4, 2016
He also reports the Thunder will hold a news conference on Thursday with Westbrook joined by team owner Clay Bennett, general manager Sam Presti and head coach Billy Donovan. Westbrook was working out with new teammate Victor Oladipo this week in Los Angeles as the two work to form a chemistry to fill the void left by former NBA MVP and scoring champion Kevin Durant who bolted from Oklahoma City to sign with the Golden State Warriors.
Westbrook averaged 23.5 points, 10.2 assists and 7.8 rebounds per game last year and I think it’s within the realm of possibilities that he could top those numbers next year without Durant around to share the load. It would be a bold prediction to be sure, but look for Westbrook to have double-digit triple doubles next year and approach a stat line next year of 25-10-9 next year.
The Thunder had no choice but to give Westbrook everything he wanted to put the trade rumors to rest and now he can focus on playing ball and working on getting the Thunder back to the NBA Finals.
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