BREAKING: Houston Rockets trade Russell Westbrook to Washington Wizards
Russell Westbrook's tenure with the Houston Rockets is coming to an end after merely one season. As reported by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the franchise has traded the 2017 NBA MVP to the Washington Wizards for John Wall and additional draft stock.
Although there had been rumors of H-Town wanting to move Westbrook, there wasn't much chatter about the same in the past few days. More importantly, Wizards GM Tommy Sheppard had mentioned only last week that the franchise had no plans of trading John Wall.
The deal doesn't change much financially for Houston Rockets or Washington Wizards considering that both Westbrook and Wall are on supermax deals. It does help the Rockets replenish their draft capital a bit though, the same that they spent on acquiring Westbrook in the first place last season.
Russell Westbrook reunites with Scott Brooks in Washington
When Russell Westbrook eventually joins up with the Washington Wizards, he'll find a familiar face in head coach Scott Brooks waiting for him. Brooks served as the head coach of OKC Thunder for over six seasons from 2008 to 2015 where he groomed Westbrook.
As far as Mr. Triple Double himself is concerned, he'll once again have the opportunity to slip into his preferred role of the primary ball-handler after playing second fiddle at Houston Rockets. He'll relish the opportunity of playing alongside sharpshooters Bradley Beal and Davis Bertans. Don't be surprised if Russell Westbrook ends the 2020-21 NBA season as the assists leader.
Fresh start for John Wall with Houston Rockets?
After enduring several ruptures and surgeries, John Wall may finally be back. At his best, he's certainly a potent weapon who would allow the Houston Rockets to continue pushing the pace following Russell Westbrook's departure. However, Wall hasn't played a game since December 2018 and there's little guarantee as to what he'll conjure when he does eventually take to the courts.
It also needs to be seen whether Wall can co-exist with James Harden because this would be the first instance of him not being the primary ball-handler on the team in many years. In any case, it allows the five-time NBA All-Star to start afresh after spending a decade with the Washington Wizards.
Also read: NBA Trade Rumors - James Harden could be traded out soon by Houston Rockets according to league insider