Kevin Durant sticks up for Russell Westbrook – NBA Update
Oklahoma City Thunder super star Kevin Durant (KD) has thrown his weight behind under fire teammate, point guard Russell Westbrook.
Westbrook faced a lot of criticism after OKC’s exit from the NBA playoffs last year, the reason being that he was too selfish and immature.
Durant believes otherwise though.
Durant considers Westbrook as a great player and a good teammate and said that reports of trouble brewing within the Oklahoma City (OKC) locker room were far from the truth.
KD revealed during an interview with Yahoo.com, that he might have had disagreements with Westbrook in the spur of the moment, but that is the part of the deal. He was also adamant that the point guard was an integral part of the OKC core;
“We butt heads just like any other players because we are both competitive, we both want to go at it, we both have ideas,” Durant said in a telephonic interview. “That’s going to happen. But I support him 100 percent. Of course, I hated when people were saying the stuff they were saying, and he hated it as well. I didn’t want it to get to his head. I hate when people try to creep into the group and try to break things up….”
Durant also went on to state that he did not want Westbrook to be replaced, as some corners have suggested this offseason.
“I don’t want any other point guard,” Durant said. “He’s perfect for us, the type of guy he is, the type of player he is, the type of teammate he is. We’re all competitive, especially me and him.”
Even with Durant’s backing, the fact remains that Westbrook did not make himself popular with his antics last season. Although, he is an exceptionally gifted athlete, Westbrook does have an attitude problem that became all too apparent last season. During the Western Conference Finals, the talented but erratic Westbrook often invited the wrath of teammates by his immature play on the court.
Things got so bad that in game-3 of the series that OKC head coach Scott Brooks benched him for the whole fourth quarter, resulting in a very pubic tantrum from the young guard. The Thunder lost that series to the Dallas Mavericks and naturally many fans pointed fingers at Russell.
Westbrook has the potential to become an absolutely devastating NBA point guard and in terms of talent, there isn’t much lacking from his arsenal. There is, however, an urgent need for him to improve his decision making and act in a more dignified manner, at least in front of the cameras.
For now though, he can rejoice the support of perhaps the most influential man in the OKC camp.
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