Is Russell Westbrook the Greater Oklahoma City Thunder Flight Risk?

With all of the talk about Kevin Durant's future, is Russell Westbrook the one the Oklahoma City Thunder should really be worried about leaving? 

Durant has two years remaining on his deal. The longer the Thunder go without bringing a championship back to Oklahoma City, the more you will hear about his possible departure when his contract is up. With the LeBron James saga in the rearview mirror (for now), the new story that will be beat into your brains is whether KD is staying or going.

But what about Westbrook? 

Like Durant, Westbrook is under contract for a few more years. Three, to be exact. 

Now, before we delve any further, it's important to keep in mind that any talk of Westbrook (or Durant) leaving is purely speculative. There's been nothing to suggest that the Thunder's star point guard wants out or that the team wants to move him. 

That makes sense. In Durant and Westbrook, Oklahoma City has two superstars in the prime of their careers who double as the league's best one-two punch. Why break up a good thing if you don't have to, right? 

Still, the two most common words you will find at the start of any sports conversation are "What if..." What if Westbrook wanted to skip town? What would be his reasons? Who would be interested, and when should the Thunder start to worry about this hypothetical scenario becoming a reality? 

Why Russell Westbrook Would Consider Leaving the Oklahoma City Thunder

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Two things have become obvious to anyone who has followed professional basketball for an extended period of time. First, nothing lasts forever in the NBA. Over the years, fans have seen dynasties in Chicago, Los Angeles and Boston crumble for a variety of reasons. 

Second, nothing drives a man to make a rash decision more than ego and hearsay. All it takes is the right person whispering the right things into a star athlete's ear for him to start second-guessing his future. We saw it happen a few years ago with LeBron James before he made "The Decision" to leave Cleveland and join the Miami Heat. 

Russell Westbrook is one of the best players in the NBA. In fact, Bleacher Report's own Ric Bucher recently called Westbrook the third-best player in the league in a debate with fellow columnist Howard Beck. 

"For me, Russ Westbrook is a guy who does impact the game on both ends of the floor, and I know, because he plays next to Kevin Durant, he doesn't nearly get as much shine," Bucher said. "I would make a case that, if you're gonna go No. 2, that he and Kevin are right there side by side."

For all of Westbrook's greatness, he's still the star point guard on Kevin Durant's team. As long as Durant is in Oklahoma City, Westbrook will always be in KD's shadow. Now, in today's NBA, young players have less of an issue with taking a back seat if it means winning a championship in the end. 

Pau Gasol went from being the top draw for the Memphis Grizzlies to being Kobe Bryant's No. 2 with the Los Angeles Lakers. Dwight Howard had no qualms about signing with the Houston Rockets last summer, despite the presence of James Harden as the franchise guy. This summer, Kevin Love was more than willing to play Robin to LeBron's Batman. 

Famously, Scottie Pippen made a Hall of Fame career out of playing second fiddle. Granted, he was doing it on a Chicago Bulls team that just so happened to have one of the greatest basketball players ever in Michael Jordan. 

The main difference between Westbrook's situation and those examples is criticism. While Durant is the team's franchise player, it is Westbrook who receives the lion's share of the criticism from those paid to give their opinions. Whether it is critiques about his playing style or his shot selection, Westbrook has become the Thunder's lightning rod (no pun intended). 

"Russell Westbrook receives more criticism than any other NBA player near his stature," Sheldon Hirsch of RealClearSports wrote in May. "Critics take aim at his style of play at the point guard position, in particular his propensity for shooting rather than passing."

On the flip side, when things go well, the positive feedback mostly shifts in Durant's direction. If or when the Thunder finally win an NBA championship, it will be Durant leading the parade. That's not to say Westbrook doesn't get his share of credit. The aforementioned co-signing from Bucher is evidence that the UCLA product has earned some respect. 

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Still, do a Google search of "Is Russell Westbrook holding Kevin Durant back?" and prepare to be amazed at the number of posts you'll find. You could also take a gander at a March article from NBA.com's Sam Smith asking, "Can the Thunder win with Russell Westbrook?" 

"There are basically no great teams where the dominant talent was challenged by another star. It was easy for Magic as a natural point guard to defer to Kareem. Larry Bird was the guy in Boston. Tim Duncan did with the Spurs, and then stepped back when he knew it was time," Smith wrote.

"But Westbrook still remains incapable. It’s difficult to blame him because he knows no other way to play. And playing this way is what’s made him great. But he’s not a natural facilitator in that he’s not really a point guard. He just plays that on TV and once stayed at a Holiday Inn Express."

While Westbrook has had plenty of moments when he's been more gunner than giver, he's not completely the second coming of Allen Iverson. In his six seasons in the NBA, Westbrook has finished in the top five of total assists three times. He's averaged under six assists per game just twice in his career, per Basketball-Reference.com.

However, the knock on Westbrook remains that he's a bit selfish and that his score-first mentality takes away touches from one of the greatest offensive machines the game has ever seen. 

At what point, then, does Westbrook get tired of having the finger pointed at him and decide to be an alpha dog elsewhere? After all, if he's going to be the bad guy, why not do it on a team where he's the main attraction? 

The other factor that could drive Westbrook away is the Thunder's inability to get over the hump and win a title. While the Thunder have been among the NBA's elite for quite some time now, they have one NBA Finals appearance to show for it. In that lone series, they were eliminated by the Heat in five games. 

Since then, Oklahoma City has been close but no cigar. The reasoning depends on who you ask. Some may blame Westbrook. Some might blame Durant. Most will point to head coach Scott Brooks, who was recently ranked 10th on Deadspin.com's list of the most useless thinkers in sports.

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With so much of a great player's legacy tied to the number of championship rings on his hand, why wouldn't Westbrook look elsewhere if he starts to feel Oklahoma City can't get the job done? After all, LeBron James did it. Chris Bosh did it. The same for Dwight Howard and Steve Nash, albeit unsuccessfully. 

The longer Oklahoma City's championship drought goes on, the more whispers will be in Westbrook's ear about how the grass is greener on another city's lawn.

Who Would Be Interested in Russell Westbrook?

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The easy answer is everybody. Who doesn't want one of the most explosive athletes in the NBA on their roster? With Westbrook not due to be a free agent until after the 2016-17 season, it's impossible to say who exactly will be in the running for Westbrook's services should he decide to test the waters. 

As we've seen this offseason, the NBA's pecking order can change with a few shrewd moves. The Cleveland Cavaliers went from having the No. 1 overall pick in this past June's draft to being the favorites to win the 2014-15 title after bringing back LeBron James and trading for Kevin Love.

Like James, Westbrook could find himself wanting to go back home. He grew up in Long Beach, California, and played his college ball at UCLA. Would he consider inheriting the Lakers throne from Kobe in a couple of years?

When the Thunder were in danger of being eliminated by the Memphis Grizzlies in May, Jason McIntyre of TheBigLead.com put together a list of Westbrook trades for Oklahoma City to consider. The team at the top of that list? The Los Angeles Lakers. 

At the time, McIntyre's deal involved Westbrook and Jeremy Lamb going to L.A. in exchange for Pau Gasol and the Lakers' 2014 first-round pick. Since then, Gasol has joined the Bulls and the Lakers have used their top pick on power forward Julius Randle. 

Needless to say, the purple and gold don't have the ammo to make a Westbrook trade work (not that OKC is shopping him anyway). 

Beyond the Lakers, the list of potential suitors would likely include the usual suspects. With Carmelo Anthony now committed long term to the Big Apple, the New York Knicks could start making moves to eventually add Westbrook. The Houston Rockets are always in the market for another superstar. 

Again, we're looking way down the road here. Most NBA front offices can't tell you what they'll be doing in three months, let alone in three years. Plus, with Durant headed to free agency a year before Westbrook, teams are going to be busy putting together their best sales pitches for him first. 

If Westbrook can stay healthy and wants a change of scenery, plenty of big markets will be ready to accommodate him. 

Is Russell Westbrook's Departure a Realistic Possibility? 

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Oscar Wilde once wrote, "I can resist everything, except temptation." With Westbrook constantly under fire in Oklahoma City and the allure of being his own man elsewhere, the temptation to leave will always be there. 

Eventually, all great groups go their separate ways. It happened with Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal in Los Angeles. It happened with LeBron James and the rest of Miami's Big Three. It could happen to the Thunder's dynamic duo. 

However, unlike Kobe and Shaq, there doesn't appear to be any bad blood between Durant and Westbrook. One isn't pining to get rid of the other, despite all of the talk about whether the two can continue to coexist. 

The likelihood of Westbrook no longer donning a Thunder jersey will be contingent on a few key factors. The first is health. If Westbrook's knees continue to be a problem, it would be understandable for the Thunder to want to strike a deal while he still has some value.

After all, before they can worry about Westbrook, they have to appease Durant, and they can't do that if their second-best player can't stay on the court. 

The second obstacle is tied to a championship. Once a team spends an extended period of time among the elite, the goal becomes less about sustainability and more about winning a title. History only remembers how great a team was by how it answers the question "Did you win a championship?" 

As much as the pressure is on Durant and Westbrook, the man who is really on the hot seat is Scott Brooks. With two of the league's five best players and another rising star in forward Serge Ibaka, there are no excuses for why Brooks can't find a way to win a championship with this core. 

If he can't make it happen soon, changes are likely to be made. If that happens, the focus will shift to who gets brought in to replace Brooks. If the team is still in a state of flux a couple of years from now, it makes sense for Durant and Westbrook to start pondering their futures in OKC. 

The last remaining factor is Westbrook's play. If it starts to become more obvious that his style conflicts with Durant's and if the team starts to suffer, the team will have to consider all options, including trading its star point guard. 

Realistically, I don't see that happening. It's next to impossible to get fair value in return for any superstar. The package the Minnesota Timberwolves received for Love, which included forward Thaddeus Young as well as top picks Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett, was the best a team has done in exchange for a superstar, and even that wasn't enough.

As for Westbrook leaving as a free agent, the possibility is always out there. Right now, I'd put the chances at 5 percent. He has a good thing going in Oklahoma City, and there's really nowhere he can go (as of right now) that can give him a better shot at a title.

Three years from now, who knows what the NBA landscape will be like? Every year that Oklahoma City doesn't have a title, the chances of Westbrook leaving increase. If Durant decides to walk in two years, those chances increase exponentially.

Of the two, Westbrook is the greater flight risk. He's the one taking the brunt of the criticism. He's the one playing second fiddle. The temptation is out there. It's up to Oklahoma City to nip it in the bud.