Russell Westbrook is the cover boy for the November issue of GQ Magazine and yes he was asked about Kevin Durant for the millionth time. Durant left the OKC Thunder in free agency to sign with the Golden State Warriors, leaving Westbrook as the franchise player, which many people figured he wanted all along.
“I mean, obviously in the NBA there’s a lot of different decisions that people make,” Westbrook says. “The whole thing in the NBA is that people sometimes have an opportunity to go where they want. And Kevin chose a place where he wanted to go.”
So, have they talked much since?
In the wake of Durant’s departure, Westbrook weighed his own future in Oklahoma City. His “process” was discussed each night on SportsCenter as though he’d been lining up suitors the way Durant had.
“But it wasn’t like that at all for me. There was no process. It was just very simple,” Westbrook says. “I wasn’t trying to figure out if I was leaving or not. I was happy where—I am happy where—I’m at. It’s very simple.”
In the beginning, there were reports that Westbrook did not want to sign a contract extension with the Thunder, but it turns out that wasn’t true. He didn’t wait to become a free agent next year and line up suitors like Durant. He instead quietly signed a three-year, $85 million contract with the only professional team he’s known. He became the league’s second-highest-paid player (tied with KD, among others, and behind only LeBron), the centerpiece of a franchise that, for the better part of a decade, has been right there, but never fully across the line.
Many people predict he will put up MVP numbers now that he’s the No. 1 option, but how will far will the Thunder go as a team?
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