Russell Westbrook is going to be a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder for the foreseeable future, as the reigning NBA MVP put pen to paper on a five-year extension with the organization in September. With such a massive commitment to the team, Westbrook has a vested interest in making sure the Thunder keep his top running mate around this summer.
Paul George‘s deal is almost certainly going to be up at the end of this season thanks to a player option in his contract, and it’s been long-assumed that the Los Angeles Lakers would be among the favorites to acquire his services. But George legitimately seems like he loves being in Oklahoma City, and says he’s going to keep an open mind upon hitting the open market.
Westbrook, meanwhile, is convinced that George already knows what he’s going to do. During his time at the podium during the NBA All-Star media day, Westbrook heard a chorus of Laker fans bust out a “we want Paul” chant for the second time this month. Westbrook couldn’t ignore it, so instead, he addressed it.
Lakers fans started chanting "We Want Paul!" and Russell Westbrook was NOT having it
(🎥: @NBA) pic.twitter.com/S1VWpO0YRQ
— SB Nation (@SBNation) February 17, 2018
“That’s out,” Westbrook said. “Paul ain’t going nowhere, it’s over for that.”
The fans got quiet, and while Westbrook took credit, they might have just not been committed to the bit. George, on the other hand, had a different approach to the love he received from his hometown fans.
A “we want Paul” chant erupted at media day a second ago from the fans in the media day stands here in LA. George chuckled at it.
— Tania Ganguli (@taniaganguli) February 17, 2018
To recap, Westbrook seems confident his teammate will stick around, Lakers fans really want to see George suit up for their team, and George isn’t giving a major tell as to what he’s going to go upon hitting free agency. In other words, this is almost definitely going to be how this shakes out regarding George over the next couple of months.
