Are Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook Again the NBA's Top 1-2 Punch?

Now that they are healthy, Oklahoma City Thunder superstars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are ready to reclaim the throne as the NBA's best dynamic duo.

The mark of a great hoops tandem is the ability to coexist as alpha dogs. Each player must be productive without stepping on the other's toes. Most importantly, the pair must find a way to elevate its team to new heights.

For years, Durant and Westbrook stood tall as basketball's best one-two punch. This season, injuries to both men have opened the door for other tandems to stake their claim as the NBA's tag team champions.

Golden State Warriors guards Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson came into the 2014-15 season with everyone from NBA.com's Sam Smith to Bleacher Report's own Grant Hughes calling them the NBA's best backcourt. They've justified that by being productive (both above 21 points per game and 39 percent shooting from three) and leading the Warriors to the league's best record at 29-5.

Elsewhere, Kyrie Irving—not Kevin Love—has emerged as LeBron James' best sidekick in Cleveland. James' former teammates, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, have been keeping the Miami Heat in the playoff race, while the Houston Rockets' James Harden and Dwight Howard continue to make their case as the league's best inside-outside duo.

With competition for their old crown at an all-time high, it's only a matter of time before the Thunder buddies work themselves back into the discussion.

The Dynamic Offense of Durant and Westbrook

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Putting points on the board has always been Durant and Westbrook's strong suit. KD is a four-time scoring champion, while Russ averaged at least 21 points per game for the past four seasons. 

This year hasn't been any different. While they are kept off the leaderboard due to a lack of games played, the efforts of Westbrook (26.2 points) and Durant (25.0 points) would rank second and fourth in scoring, respectively. Westbrook (29.59) and Durant (29.11) are also second and third in player efficiency ratings, respectively, per ESPN's Hollinger stats. 

The duo has been productive in other areas as well. Both average more than five rebounds a game, and Westbrook is unofficially 12th in the league in assists with 7.1 dimes per game. Here's a look at how the twosome's combined stats compare to other top pairs:

Players	Team	Combined Points Per Game	Combined Rebounds Per game	Combined Assists Per Game
Russell Westbrook & Kevin Durant	OKC	51.2	11.8	10.7
LeBron James & Kyrie Irving	CLE	46.2	8.4	12.7
Stephen Curry & Klay Thompson	GSW	44.5	8.5	11.1
Dwyane Wade & Chris Bosh	MIA	44.2	11.7	7.5
James Harden & Dwight Howard	HOU	44	17.4	8

The first two months of Durant's season were marred by injuries and a struggle to return to elite form. After missing the team's first 17 games following foot surgery, it took the reigning MVP some time to shake off the rust. Just as he was getting back into the swing of things, he suffered a sprained ankle against the Warriors on Dec. 18. As a parting shot, Durant became the first player in NBA history with 30 points in under 20 minutes that night.

The ankle injury kept Durant down for six games, and he came back with a vengeance on New Year's Eve against the Phoenix Suns. The Washington, D.C. native unleashed capital punishment to the tune of 44 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in easily his best performance of the year. 

"It felt good," Durant said afterward, per the Associated Press. "My teammates were running plays for me and getting me open shots. I just tried to finish for them. My shots felt good and that win felt better."

Since his second triumphant return, Durant has contributed 29.6 points, 8.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists in five games. On the season, he's shooting 52.2 percent from the field and 42.5 percent from downtown. He's also posting an offensive rating of 117.6, which is good for 20th in the NBA. It's safe to say the Durantula is back now. 

As for Westbrook, he made a strong return from a broken hand (32 points, eight assists and seven rebounds in 24 minutes against the New York Knicks on Nov. 29) but has had trouble finding the bottom of the basket. His 43 percent shooting from the field and 26.4 percent mark from three are his worst efforts since his second pro season. 

Despite that, Westbrook still leads the league with an offensive box plus/minus (estimate of points per 100 possessions a player contributes above league average) of 9.8 and an overall box plus/minus of 11.3, per Basketball-Reference.com. He also makes up for his lackluster shooting touch by unleashing highlight reel dunks like this one against the Sacramento Kings on Jan. 7:

Durant and Westbrook's gaudy offensive numbers may be skewed by their lack of time on the court, but their ability to hit the ground running is a good sign going forward.

Underrated Defense

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Whether overshadowed by their dominant offense or because their work isn't as obvious, Westbrook and Durant don't get the credit they deserve on the defensive end. Westbrook, in particular, made it a point this season to do whatever he could to establish himself as the league's best stopper, as he told USA Today Sports' Sam Amick:

"

I defend every night but I told myself in the summer time that I really needed to lock back in defensively and try to be the best defensive player in the league. …

…For us to win games, we've got to defend. We can score with the best of them; we can do that every night. But I think defense is something that we've got to take pride in as a unit. It starts with me, and my job is to be able to come out and set the tone defensively and kind of keep going from there.

"

Westbrook has certainly done his part so far. His 2.17 steals per game rank him third in the league, with only Curry and the Memphis Grizzlies' Tony Allen better at pilfering the rock. The Long Beach blur is also third with a steal percentage (rate of possessions that end in a steal when a player is on the floor) of 3.6. 

Meanwhile, Durant's quiet demeanor has translated to his stealthy efforts on D. According to NBA.com, opponents shoot 42.2 percent with KD guarding them, compared to 44.7 percent normally. He also posts a defensive rating of 102, which is on par with known defenders such as the New Orleans Pelicans' Anthony Davis and the Warriors' Andre Iguodala.  

This chart offers a look at how Durant's and Westbrook's individual defensive efforts stack up against the rest of the pack. 

Name	Team	Defended Field Goal Percentage	Normal Opponents' Field Goal Percentage (Difference)	Defensive Rating
Russell Westbrook	OKC	46.5	44.7 (+2.3)	101
Kevin Durant	OKC	42.2	44.7 (-2.5)	102
LeBron James	CLE	43.8	44.4 (-0.6)	108
Kyrie Irving	CLE	47.4	43.8 (+3.6)	110
Stephen Curry	GSW	39.4	43.9 (-4.6)	98
Klay Thompson	GSW	37.5	43.2 (-5.8)	101
Chris Bosh	MIA	49.3	46.6 (+2.7)	108
Dwyane Wade	MIA	40.8	44 (-3.2)	112
James Harden	HOU	43.4	44.6 (-1.2)	100
Dwight Howard	HOU	46.9	46.5 (+0.5)	98

Among these contingents, Curry and Thompson have done the best job of locking opponents down. However, Durant and Westbrook aren't that far behind. The Thunder duo's ability to match or even surpass The Splash Brothers' work on defense will go a long way to making them the league's best all-around tandem. 

Rocky Widner/Getty Images

For the first time in a long time, Durant and Westbrook face an uphill battle to reclaim the title of the NBA's best one-two punch. While the duo was busy nursing injuries, some of the league's best tandems saw an opportunity to plant their flag. 

Now that KD and Russ have leapt over the biggest hurdle of the season in getting healthy, the real work can be done. The first step is leading the Thunder to the playoffs. Any claim to being the league's top pair becomes moot without the postseason, and Oklahoma City is currently two-and-a-half games behind the Phoenix Suns for the eighth seed in the West. 

If Westbrook can regain his shooting touch and Durant can stay healthy, the two dark-horse MVP candidates have the chance to take back what used to be theirs. 

The Thunder buddies are no longer watching the throne. 

They are ready to bring it back to Oklahoma City. 

Note: All stats current as of Jan. 10 and are courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com, unless otherwise noted.