Rising Stars Who Will Become the Next Russell Wesbrook

Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook has come a long way in his four years in the NBA, going from a rookie who looked confused at times playing the point guard to a two-time All-Star and one of the more explosive floor generals in the league.

He's become one of the top scorers in the NBA, averaging 23.6 points per game on the season, but that doesn't tell the entire story of Westbrook's evolving skills.

Since his rookie campaign, Westbrook has improved each season as a shooter and as a facilitator. He's gotten better at taking care of the ball, and has also grown on the defensive end of the floor.

Westbrook isn't the only young point guard in the NBA with evolving skills, and with so much young talent at the position, he's about to have some company in the next few years.

Here's a look at some rising stars who in a couple of years could see their careers take off in similar fashion to Westbrook's.

John Wall

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 NBA draft has all the tools to become a top NBA point guard.

After struggling initially during his sophomore campaign, Wall put together nearly identical numbers as he did during his rookie season, averaging 16.3 points, 8.0 assists and 4.5 rebounds.

Wall is as explosive and athletic as Westbrook and similarly has struggled with his shot and taking care of the basketball at times.

But his career is set to take off. Once Wall gets some talent around him, his numbers should increase across the board.

Kyrie Irving

The 2011-12 Rookie of the Year award winner had a nice first NBA season, averaging 18.5 points and 5.4 assists, better numbers than Westbrook put up during his rookie season.

He's also looks like a better shooter than Westbrook at the same stage in his career.

Irving shot 47 percent from the floor, 40 percent from behind the arc and 87 percent from the free-throw line during his rookie season. Westbrook shot only 40 percent from the floor, 27 percent from three-point range and 81 percent from the charity stripe as a rookie.

Kemba Walker

Walker didn't have the greatest of rookie seasons, but he played for a miserable Charlotte Bobcats team and has the overall talent to progress like Westbrook.

Walker averaged 12.1 points and 4.5 assists per game, but he has ability. Three years from now, it wouldn't surprise me to see him become one of the more solid point guards in the league.

He will have to improve his shooting of only 36 percent from the floor, but Walker did a good job taking care of the ball and should get much better in all areas in the upcoming seasons.

Ty Lawson

Lawson's been in the league three years now and has gotten much better in each, finishing the 2011-12 season averaging 16.4 points and 6.4 assists for the Denver Nuggets.

Similar to Westbrook, Lawson gets it done with speed and if he keeps evolving as a guard, he will be one of the NBA's best before long.

Brandon Knight

Knight didn't have the best of rookie seasons, but he showed enough to offer an encouraging future.

He got much better as the season went along and finished with averages of 12.8 points and 3.8 assists per game. In the second half of the season, he also got much better taking care of the ball and hitting his shots.

Knight is definitely a young guard worth keeping an eye on. Three years from now, the Pistons could have themselves a very good point guard.

Stephen Curry

Curry is already an exciting young guard and if he can stay healthy, he could become very good.

Through his first three NBA seasons, Curry averaged a solid 17.5 points and 5.8 assists while shooting a good percentage from everywhere on the floor.

He has the talent to be the scorer that Westbrook is but needs to be more assertive to do so. With Monta Ellis now in Milwaukee, Curry may look for his shot more often next season.

Brandon Jennings

Jennings has tons of talent and after three NBA seasons has shown signs of a future All-Star.

He's coming off a very good season in which he averaged 19.1 points and 5.5 assists. Similar to Westbrook, shot selection has been a problem early in his career as Jennings shot a career high 41 percent this season. Once the field goal percentage comes up, Jennings will be even better.

Ricky Rubio

Rubio lived up to all the hype coming into the NBA and was fantastic for the Timberwolves before tearing his ACL.

He averaged 10.6 points, 8.2 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game and while he needs to develop a consistent shot—36 percent from the floor—Rubio is young enough to turn that into a strength in the next few years.

The NBA is going to be dominated by good young point guards in the near future, and if Rubio comes back completely healthy, he could become one of the best.

Jeremy Lin

Lin's a tough case because his sample size is really small. He only started 25 games but he was very impressive, averaging 18.2 points and 7.7 assists per game while shooting 45 percent from the floor.

He showed he can play at the NBA level, now Lin needs to improve in a few areas. The most obvious improvement can come in limiting turnovers as he averaged 4.7 turnovers per game during his starts.

If Lin continues to get better, it will be very interesting to see where Linsanity is three years from now.

Jrue Holiday

Holiday has had a pretty good showing and has the looks of a point guard who's ready to break out very soon.

His numbers (13.5 points, 4.5 assists) are slightly down from a season ago when he averaged 14.0 points and 6.5 assists, and Holiday also shot a little worse from the floor this season at 43 percent. But he's opened some eyes this postseason by averaging 16.7 points, 4.9 assists and 5.0 rebounds in leading the Sixers to the second round.

If Holiday can build off his impressive postseason, his future as an NBA point guard could be a bright one.

Isaiah Thomas

Thomas was almost an afterthought in Sacramento when the season began, but by the end of the season he was the starter for the Kings and did a very good job, averaging 14.8 points and 5.4 assists in 37 games as a starter.

Thomas shows a good feel for the game and while he only shot 38 percent from behind the arc as a rookie, he could become a very good point guard in the next two to three seasons.

Jeff Teague

In his first year as a starter in Atlanta, Teague was solid in averaging 12.6 points and 4.9 assists.

Like Westbrook, Teague is very athletic and I think his overall game could come along very nicely during the next two to three seasons.

He may never be the pure scorer that Westbrook is, but he could become a very good all-around point guard.