Shaq has pointed words for Thunder star Russell Westbrook

[Graviton]

He's Shaq'tin a fool here....

Durant's style is suboptimal right now... right now (at least as of last season) he relies on spot-up three-pointers and long-dribbling forays to get his 30+ every night - this works in the regular season when you play bad/mediocre teams for 3/4 of your games and you don't play them repeatedly so they don't gameplan to take away your strengths...

but in the playoffs, this style can be slowed down by the best teams.... so what's westbrook supposed to do while Durant is being slowed down?... westie HAS to step up while Durant is still building his game to an optimal level....

once durant can add post dominance to his other skills, then he will be CAPABLE of being a winning #1 option against the best teams, and at that point, westbrook should indeed take a step back... but until then, it's westbrook's team as far as i'm concerned.

Finally someone that gets it, Durant does need to improve his post game, he gets manhandled on the perimeter by tough defenders. Can't even free himself up at times. And t's not Westbrook is holding him back, Durant still takes the most shots. Idk what the complaining is about.

[kuniva_dAMiGhTy]

What exactly is Westbrook supposed to do? I am tired of these blanket statements and buzzwords that don't actually focus on anything. "He needs to step back". WTF does that mean?

Set his team up more; shoot less. His aggressiveness is commendable, but I feel he plays a little selfish at times.

TBH, I feel OKC's problem(s) stem from their head coach. Brooks isn't the right fit.

[tpols]

Come on. Stop knob slobbing Westbrook. You've already made yourself look stupid with a near Westbrook > Wade argument being made in another Westbrick thread. What's the fascination? Yea, and Tony Allen is a great defender.

I never said Westbrook was better than wade.. I said he showed flashes of being as good in the playoffs last year and that if it's a sign of things to come in the future for his peak that there'd be a discussion .

Wade fans were so mad they were claiming Westbrook was barely a top 10 player.. you even said Westbrook had never matched wades 2011 run where he dropped 24/7/4 despite Westbrook coming off a fresh 27/8/7 against stronger competition.. that mightve been the dumbest/most untruthful statement of all in that thread.

K blaze shared my sentiment as did multiple others. It was mostly wade stans with the typical eff gee argument and 'but Russell's dumb!'

[Graviton]

Set his team up more; shoot less. His aggressiveness is commendable, but I feel he plays a little selfish at times.

TBH, I feel OKC's problem(s) stem from their head coach. Brooks isn't the right fit.

Set up who though? Perkins and Thabo who blow wide open opportunities every game? Only guy he can set up is Ibaka and he does get him wide open mid range jumpers. Durant doesn't need set ups and can get his own shots, but he still receives them open 3s after Westbrook's drives.

It is Brooks, he has no offensive plan. Just ISO ISO ISO, I still remember that play out of a timeout in this playoffs, it was "Give Durant the ball so he can jack up a contested 3 over two defenders". No screens, no trick plays, just simple idiotic hail mary shots.

[raprap]

It wasn't Westbrooks fault that KD was shook.

[j3lademaster]

It wasn't Westbrooks fault that KD was shook.

This. I refuse Durant can't beat a 5'10" defender if he were playing normally, even if that 5'10" defender is CP3. He had the mismatch OKC wanted and blew it for whatever reason. That's not Brooks's fault albeit he's a bad coach, nor is it WB- who if he had "stepped back" OKC wouldn't even have made it past the 1st round.

[RidonKs]

Shaq just went through his old quotes from playing with Kobe and just inserted Russell Westbrook's name in there for Kobe.

this to a tee. its all shaq knows how to do.

[NZStreetBaller]

This. I refuse Durant can't beat a 5'10" defender if he were playing normally, even if that 5'10" defender is CP3. He had the mismatch OKC wanted and blew it for whatever reason. That's not Brooks's fault albeit he's a bad coach, nor is it WB- who if he had "stepped back" OKC wouldn't even have made it past the 1st round.

Okay why in the hell do people keep bringing up Tony Allen and cp3s defence over and over like it ruined durant. If im not mistaken durant beat both of those teams maybe he didnt play well but he won. So quit acting like they were the death of him

[bizil]

The reason why Westbrook stands out in this regard is because he's the PG. The most premium assets of the PG spot is to be a floor general and drop off those dimes. Granted, OKC needs Westbrook to score the points he does. But guys like Big O, Magic and Isiah could score just as many points as Westbrook AND do it from a pass first PG perspective. They were masters at dictating a game and knowing what to do when AND being dominant in the scoring and passing aspects at the same time.

U have a revolutionary talent in Durant so he needs to be the top dog. So I agree with Shaq. Westbrook's mark needs to be I'm the best ALL AROUND PLAYER on OKC. He can be a great scorer, passer, and defender all in one. He has that kind of potential. But the question is can he do it from PG and grow as a floor general. Or does he need to move to SG and do it from there.

[tpols]

Okay why in the hell do people keep bringing up Tony Allen and cp3s defence over and over like it ruined durant. If im not mistaken durant beat both of those teams maybe he didnt play well but he won. So quit acting like they were the death of him

they won because reggie and westbrook stepped up lol.. if they had kept trying to feed KD as he was being put in a straight jacket they wouldve fken lost. Thats why shaq is retarded.


Hes also one to talk about playing the right way.. "The dog wont protect the house unless you feed him" Guy threatened to not play defense if he didnt get his looks, came in fat/unmotivated when he wasnt getting money he wanted.. couldnt be a more hypocritical spokeperson for this issue.

[Jef]

not shocking that perhaps the biggest waste of talent in american sports history is hating on player who continues to improve every year.

shaq should have been the most dominating force of all time, but cared more about egos and let himself go during what should have been the prime of his career.

westbrook should have been an ultra athletic, defensive minded role player, but grew into an all around superstar who continues to rise to the occasion on the biggest stages.

[keep-itreal]

yeah sure, Westbrook should pass the ball to Perkins and let him get some buckets

What's the point of passing the ball to his useless teammates if they can't even score points.

Westbrook has to be agressive otherwise they're losing

[PJR]

What exactly is Westbrook supposed to do? I am tired of these blanket statements and buzzwords that don't actually focus on anything. "He needs to step back". WTF does that mean?

Play with more discipline, and value possessions better.

Despite being a shitty three point shooter, I've seen Westbrook chuck 30 footers, 3-4 seconds in the shot clock far too much. You also shouldn't be shooting almost 5 threes a game, when you're only a 30% three point shooter in the first place.

He also breaks plays off a ton. People kill Scott Brooks for his supposed lack of offensive imagination, but the reality is, most of the time, it's Westbrook breaking off the plays.

[imdaman99]

It's true that Durant was great in the regular season and was a runaway MVP... but everyone knows playoff basketball is different. The same calls he would get in the regular season, they were not calling for him in the Grizzlies or Clippers or Spurs series.

Westbrook is not holding Durant back, unless you believe Durant should be averaging 40 points which neither Jordan or Kobe or Shaq ever did. Durant can play great without Westbrook for stretches... in the regular season. When, they are playing different teams every night. We saw what the Grizz did to him without Westbrook. Westbrook does more than just offense, he gave Conley problems which didn't happen last year when Westbrook was out.

If Shaq had his way, Kobe would have never developed into the beast that he became. Shaq has gotten jealous everywhere he played. On Orlando, Penny became more marketable than him so he left. On the Lakers, all the little kids wanted to be Kobe and liked him more so he wanted a ridiculous amount of money or he wanted out. On Miami, he never had a chance as that is Wade's town. If samurai wants to talk about over-emotional, it's Shaq. Shaq did his crying off the courts and was jealous like a Mean Girl.

That being said, it's possible Westbrook could average 9 assists this season.

[Dro]

I agree with Shaq.....