Russell Westbrook Planning to Join Clippers

Veteran guard Russell Westbrook will have a new NBA home, and it will be the same as his old one.

Well, sort of.

While Westbrook isn’t re-joining the Lakers, he will remain in Los Angeles and sign with the Clippers following a contract buyout with the Jazz, agent Jeff Schwartz told Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Westbrook, 34, has been recruited by at least star Clippers forward Paul George, and maybe star forward Kawhi Leonard too.

The Clippers have been on the lookout for guard help after trading away John Wall, Reggie Jackson and Luke Kennard. They became “increasingly interested” in Westbrook after he met with coach Tyronn Lue and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank, per Wojnarowski.

And Westbrook won’t even have to move away from his hometown to find a new place to play.

He should be plenty motivated after the one-and-a-half season experiment next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis with the Lakers totally bombed. In the end, Westbrook was relegated to coming off the bench.

The Lakers traded Westbrook to the Jazz to end their often rocky relationship, and while there were reports that he could stay in Utah, it seems the Clippers came after him hard. He had also been linked to the Bulls, Wizards, Heat and a few others.

Jazz CEO Danny Ainge and GM Justin Zanik told Westbrook that they would welcome him reporting to the team, but that the Jazz intended to stick with its younger rotation, per Wojnarowski.

Westbrook is averaging 15.9 points, 7.5 assists and 6.2 rebounds in 52 appearances on the season. He is shooting just 42 percent from the field, though, including 30 percent on 3-pointers. 

Still, he could prove to be the type of push-the-pace and experienced point guard the Clippers were hoping to get when they signed Wall.

After finalizing a contract buyout with the Utah Jazz, nine-time All-Star guard Russell Westbrook plans to sign with the Los Angeles Clippers, his agent Jeff Schwartz of @excelbasketball tells ESPN. pic.twitter.com/OjZ0Mkuz5x

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 20, 2023