Russ has an MVP. He has multiple years averaging a triple double. So why in the world would anyone think he is overrated?

A few facts (and opinions):

1. Russ has an effective shooting percentage in his career of 46.5%. To compare that to his contemporaries at the PG position in Steph Curry at 58.2% and Chris Paul at 51.8%. Those are massive differences. Russ has never been over 50% for a single season.

2. Russ is a volume 3 point shooter and perhaps the worst volume 3 point shooter of all-time. He is a lifetime 30.8% 3 point shooter. This year he took 5.6 three pointers per game and shot at a 29% clip. Ouch.

3. All assists are not created equal. Some assists you set a guy up for a wide open shot. On some you thread the needle in traffic for a layup or dunk. For a guy like Steph Curry he gets a ton of "hockey assists" as he draws a double team and passes to Draymond or Iggy who finds a wide open guy. The whole play was created by Curry and he facilitates a wide open shot. A guy like Paul is more traditional but can play a good team game. So how does Westbrook get so many assists? Well he always has the ball in his hands . When he passes he expects you to shoot. Westbrook was #2 in the NBA in touches and 3 in time of possession (averages 7.7 seconds per possession). Steph Curry is at 4.8 seconds to give you a point of reference. Is Westbrook considered a great passer? I don't think I have seen anyone say that.

4. Westbrook has always been a good rebounder for a guard, but his numbers jumped when Durant left. The question is why? Durant is not a great rebounder. Was it out of necessity? On paper the rosters shouldn't have dictated a need for additional rebounding. His offensive rebound numbers essentially stayed the same (they actually went down by .1 per game) so all of the rebounds came at the defensive end. The team rebounding numbers went down. Essentially on paper he was taking rebounds away from big men and the Thunder. How much value is there in that? How much of it was to chase triple doubles?

5. This one is simply my opinion, but I believe Kevin Durant left because of Russell Westbrook. Durant spoke a lot about the Warriors playing the right way. You know who doesn't play the right way? Russell Westbrook. After every playoff loss in the Durant/Westbrook era it seems like we asked why Westbrook took as many shots as he did and Durant didn't.

6. On paper, Kevin Durant is the best player in the history of the Thunder/Supersonics franchise (he has the top 4 win share seasons in the franchise's history). If it is true that Durant left because of Westbrook and their style of play (Durant has said it wasn't because of Westbrook, but I'm pretty sure he would say that either way) then would it have been better that the Thunder would have passed on Westbrook? Certainly an argument could be made.

7. Westbrook's game will continue to decline as he gets older because so much of what he brings is raw athleticism. That athleticism is already not what it once was and Father Time will continue to eat away at him as he goes through his 30s.

8. Wins and losses...for a guy in Westbrook who is supposed to be one of his generation's top players, why hasn't he won more? Westbrook has now had 4 years of playing without Durant (I'm counting the one where Durant was injured) and has never won 50 games in any of those seasons. He has played two of those with Paul George (arguably 1st Team All-NBA this season) and another one with Victor Oladipo (who was on pace for more than 50 wins with the Pacers this year before he was injured). Yet nary a 50 win season.
Durant played half of the 2013-2014 season without Westbrook and they went 59-23. Triple doubles are a nice stat, but when it comes down to it they should be the means towards winning games. For Westbrook I'm simply not sure that is the case.