According to Los Angeles Clippers reporter Joey Linn, Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic has already been in touch with new teammate Russell Westbrook to welcome the floor general to Denver and discuss their pairing.
Nikola Jokic has been out of the country for the Olympics, but I’m told he’s already spoken to Russell Westbrook on the phone to welcome him to Denver and discuss their pairing next season.
Should be a fun duo for the Nuggets. https://t.co/WVNqTMEU06
— Joey Linn (@joeylinn_) July 26, 2024
Earlier in the offseason, the Clippers dealt Westbrook to the Utah Jazz as part of a sign-and-trade that netted Los Angeles a defensive ace in Kris Dunn. Utah then bought out Westbrook’s contract, and the 35-year-old agreed to a two-year, $6.8 million deal with the Nuggets on Friday.
Former NBA MVP Russell Westbrook is signing a two-year, $6.8 million contract with the Denver Nuggets, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Deal has a player option for 2025-26 season. pic.twitter.com/nZeK3ZZsvT
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 26, 2024
Westbrook is far removed from the player he was in his prime, when he seemingly racked up triple-doubles on a nightly basis. He hasn’t averaged a triple-double since the 2020-21 campaign, when he was a member of the Washington Wizards.
However, while Westbrook is no longer among the NBA’s elite players, he still impacted winning for the Clippers off the bench in the 2023-24 regular season. Across 68 games played (11 starts) in his second season with the team, he averaged 11.1 points per contest on 45.4 percent shooting from the floor to go along with 5.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game.
Westbrook’s new team — the Nuggets — underperformed in the 2024 NBA Playoffs. After making quick work of LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round, the Nuggets were eliminated by Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves in the following round.
Denver lost the series in seven games, and the team’s lack of depth became apparent in the deciding Game 7. After all, no player outside of Jokic or Jamal Murray finished with more than seven points, and Christian Braun led all scorers off the bench for Denver with only five points on 1-of-3 shooting from the field and 0-of-1 shooting from 3-point range.
Westbrook should bolster a second unit that left a lot to be desired last season. Denver also needed some guard depth after losing some backcourt rotation pieces earlier this offseason. Perhaps now that the Nuggets have added a proven contributor in Westbrook, the team will have enough firepower off its bench to make some noise in the 2024-25 season.
