Overrated by a few because they love his mentality and intensity, but underrated now because most people look past all his stats and just think, inefficient stat chasing chucker who’s a bad teammate. You do have to take his numbers with a grain of salt, but 22/12/12 is still crazy.
I wish he had the ability to play like Jimmy Butler. I don’t think he has the IQ of Butler, but Jimmy has figured out how to be a very efficient offensive player who can’t shoot. I think the key difference is Jimmy is so smart and is a very good and very underrated facilitator. Westbrook gets a ton of assists, but mostly just because of the pressure he puts on the defense.
I know it will never happen, but if Westbrook could channel his intensity, pick his spots, and focus more on facilitating and getting to the rim, I think his impact would be more meaningful. Would help if he could figure out how to make free throws again. Jimmy keeps his efficiency up by getting to the line a ton and hitting them at a high clip. Westbrook used to be a 80% ft shooter, but now he’s a 65% guy. Strange.
Anyways, my thought for the day. I don’t think he has it in him to change who he is, but I think with just some minor tweaks he could still be a top 10-15 guy, but as is, he’s probably not a top 30 guy.