Though his wardrobe hardly suggests it, Russell Westbrook is old-school. The Oklahoma City Thunder superstar plays basketball with a relentless anger that marked the NBA’s rise to national prominence in the 1980s and sustained it through the decade thereafter.
Westbrook scowls, mean-mugs, celebrates, and hustles like every game could be his last, and has no concern for making friends along the way – he just wants to win. It’s a mentality Larry Bird understands. The Boston Celtics legend didn’t perform with Westbrook’s ferocious flair, but is known as one of the sport’s preeminent trash-talkers. And Bird, obviously, is among the most tireless grunts the game has ever seen – look no further than his career ending early due to nagging back pain as a result.
It’s no surprise that the Hall-of-Famer and Indiana Pacers president is a fan of Westbrook’s game. The extent to which he appreciates Oklahoma City’s triple-double machine, however, is certainly noteworthy nonetheless.
In a must-read Q&A with Mike Mazzeo of ESPN, Bird said he hopes that Westbrook wins a decade’s worth of MVPs.
ESPN.com: Russell Westbrook has been averaging nearly 30 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds per game for over a month now. You’ve put together similar stretches during your career. What do you think of what he’s been able to accomplish?
Larry Bird: Here’s a young man that has had serious injuries — bad knee injuries throughout his career — yet every time he walks on the court, you know you’re going to get 100 percent from him. He attacks, he’s fearless and he plays the way it should be played, so I’m all for him. I hope he wins 10 MVPs in a row. I just love players that compete on a nightly basis and really take the challenge to their opponents.
High praise. Asked to choose a winner for this year’s Maurice Podoloff trophy, though, Bird demurred, insisting “you couldn’t go wrong with any” of the candidates. It’s safe to say that The Legend’s vote would go to Westbrook, though, and he makes it obvious why.
What Bird forgets is that not every player can perform with Westbrook’s trademark intensity. The 26 year-old is one of the most well-conditioned athletes in league history – we’ve never seen a guy perform with such sustained ferocity, mostly because there perhaps hasn’t been a player capable of doing so.
It’s obvious Bird appreciates Westbrook so much for possessing that attribute, but it’s also unrealistic for him to expect the entire league to play that way. As he’s proven time and again, Russ is the exception as opposed to the rule.
And it’s that reality which could win Westbrook the first MVP of his career this season. Only nine more to go to make Bird happy.
[ESPN]
