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Paul Pierce reacts to Nuggets' major Russell Westbrook addition
07/19/2024 12:33 PM
The Denver Nuggets showed that it is, indeed, better late than never. Amid a lackluster offseason in which they lost a pillar of their championship team in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, it was paramount for the Nuggets to make a move that would address their mounting depth issues. On Thursday, the Nuggets finally made their long-awaited signing of Russell Westbrook after he became available following a buyout agreement in the aftermath of his trade from the Los Angeles Clippers.
Westbrook may be a future Hall of Famer, but it has been very apparent over the past three seasons that he is in the midst of a very steep decline. The 35-year-old floor general is as polarizing of a player as ever, and the Nuggets’ addition of him was met divisively. But at the very least, Paul Pierce believes that Westbrook is going to be a major help for Nikola Jokic and company in the coming season.
“He gives them off the court leadership. I kinda look at it like a Jason Kidd role in Dallas. Jason Kidd, he wasn’t Jason Kidd at the time but he was so valuable at the time as far as leadership and plays and defending multiple positions like Russ can do. I feel like this is a great fit,” Pierce said in appearance on FOX Sports’ Undisputed.
"I like this move with Russ right there as a starter with Jamal Murray at the 2 & I think that [the Nuggets] can still make some noise as a contender as long as [Nikola Jokic] is still playing at an MVP level."
Paul Pierce on Russell Westbrook to Denverpic.twitter.com/NV9Yj8TILe
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 19, 2024
Paul Pierce even went as far as to say that it might be best for the Nuggets to start Russell Westbrook in the backcourt alongside Jamal Murray.
“I would make him as a starter. … I like this move with Russ right there as a starter with Jamal Murray at the 2 & I think that [the Nuggets] can still make some noise as a contender as long as [Nikola Jokic] is still playing at an MVP level,” Pierce added.
While that idea may be too far-fetched, as the last thing the Nuggets need in the backcourt is a non-shooting threat like Russell Westbrook, Paul Pierce indeed made some salient points explaining how the 2017 NBA MVP could be of help to Denver’s hopes of contending for a championship even in his declined state.
The Nuggets will be bringing Russell Westbrook off the bench
In terms of name value, Russell Westbrook definitely deserves a starting spot. But Westbrook is no longer the player he once was. The athleticism is still there; after all, he is starting from such a high place that any drop-off means that his athletic qualities still remain top-tier. He can still set his teammates up with the best of them. But the rest of his game has declined sharply.
Westbrook’s pull-up midrange jumpshot, which used to be his money shot, has deserted him. He can get to the rim still thanks to his elite first step, but he doesn’t have the soft touch to make the most of his ability to put pressure on the opposing paint. The way he played for the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2024 NBA playoffs was very hard to watch, as the Dallas Mavericks disrespected his ability to score at every turn.
The Mavericks’ disrespect paid off for them; Westbrook’s best ability nowadays is his ability to dish the rock, but how can he dish the rock when he’s being dared to score not just from beyond the arc, but from everywhere on the court? The Mavs were content to just wait for him around the basket, as they simply were going to live with every jumpshot he took, and their gambit worked.
Westbrook shot a ghastly 26 percent from the field during the Clippers’ six-game series loss against the Mavericks, and it was clear that he did not have a place on the team with James Harden commandeering the offense. It’s these glaring weaknesses of his game that will prevent him from being anything more than a sixth man for the Nuggets.
For starters, Westbrook’s playmaking isn’t needed as much in the starting unit with Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray’s two-man game continuing to be the backbone of their offense. Westbrook’s presence would just cramp the floor, giving those two less space to work with. The good news is that the former MVP has gotten much better in moving without the basketball, but even then, parking him in an off-ball role does not make the most out of his skillset.
With no one to take control of the team whenever Jokic or Murray need a breather, that is when Westbrook will shine for the Nuggets. He should give Denver a relatively high floor of production when the starters are resting, and he could push the pace with the likes of Peyton Watson, Julian Strawther, and he should have some solid spacing in the second unit with Dario Saric around as a stretch big.
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