The Sacramento Kings signed Russell Westbrook to a one-year, $3.6 million contract. The deal is non-guaranteed, so the Kings can waive Westbrook at any point this season and not be affected financially.
Westbrook was an unrestricted free agent all summer after declining his 2025-26 player option with the Denver Nuggets. While Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine recruited Westbrook to the Kings and are excited to play with him, a league source told Ahn Fire Digital that not everyone within the Sacramento organization is excited about Westbrook.
A future Hall of Famer, Westbrook has a big personality and is very erratic on the basketball court. Some members of the Kings are worried about Westbrook’s poor shooting, decision-making in critical moments and habit of turning the ball over too many times, the source said.
Westbrook appeared in 75 games for the Nuggets last season. He averaged 13.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 1.4 steals, 0.5 blocks and 3.2 turnovers per game while shooting 44.9 percent from the field, 32.3 percent from beyond the arc and 66.1 percent from the free-throw line.
A nine-time All-Star, Westbrook will come off the bench for the Kings. The veteran guard had 242 turnovers with the Nuggets last season. He was sixth in the NBA in turnovers despite being a bench player.
“I think this is going to be a disaster,” an NBA executive told Ahn Fire Digital about Westbrook’s fit with the Kings. “DeMar doesn’t shoot 3s, Zach doesn’t guard anyone and Westbrook can’t shoot period.”
Some members of the Kings are also worried about how Westbrook will react if he doesn’t finish games in the fourth quarter. Westbrook pouted behind the scenes when he was taken out of games in crunch time with the Los Angeles Clippers and Nuggets, the source said.
The Kings begin the 2025-26 season on Oct. 22 against the Phoenix Suns. Westbrook will play despite joining Sacramento after training camp and preseason.
It will be fascinating to see how Westbrook performs this season with the Kings, who missed the playoffs last season.
