[ad_1]
Oklahoma City star guard Russell Westbrook and his agent, Thad Foucher, are in touch with Thunder's executive director, Sam Presti, about the next steps in Westbrook's career, including the possibility of an exchange. before the start of next season, told ESPN sources close.
The two sides have 11 years of history together and both understand that the time has probably come to explore Westbrook's commercial opportunities, ESPN sources told the league.
After star player Paul George pushed the Thunder to trade against LA's Clippers to associate with free agent Kawhi Leonard, the Thunder's window to qualify for the playoffs seems to be closed. The return of the Clippers to OKC from five future first-round selections, two selection swaps and fully-rookie playmaker Shai Gilgeous-Alexander marks the start of the Thunder's overhaul of the lineup.
2 related
The remaining four years and $ 170 million on the Westbrook contract are no longer reasonable for a non-taxpayer.
For the Thunder, this marks the first glance at a possible reset of the franchise since the team left Seattle for Oklahoma City, with Westbrook, 30, the last remaining player on the original team that moved.
Westbrook faced a similar situation in 2016 as a result of Kevin Durant's departure for the Golden State Warriors, but after weighing his options, he chooses to renegotiate his contract and sign an extension with the Thunder. The Thunder used this agreement as a springboard to expand its window. He traded for George the following summer when Westbrook signed a five-year supermax expansion to become the highest paid player in NBA history at the time. The circumstances are different in many ways now, however, given the age, current contract and position of the Thunder at Westbrook.
The Thunder could perhaps rework his training to try to remain competitive around Westbrook and Steven Adams, although this scenario is unlikely. With a payroll tax balance of $ 43 million with the current list, the Thunder were cutting costs before George 's deal and will only accelerate on that front now.
Westbrook has had three consecutive triple triple seasons on average and was voted the NBA's most valuable player in 2017.
ESPN NBA reporter Royce Young contributed to this report.
[ad_2]
Source link