Russell Westbrook is expected to sign with the Denver Nuggets after reaching a contract buyout with the Jazz.
Russell Westbrook is expected to sign with the Denver Nuggets after reaching a contract buyout with the Jazz. (Tim Warner/Getty Images)
Russell Westbrook is on the move again.
The Los Angeles Clippers struck a deal to send Westbrook to the Utah Jazz on Thursday, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Westbrook is expected to reach a buyout with the Jazz in the near future, which will set him up to eventually join the Denver Nuggets.
The Nuggets will mark the sixth team Westbrook has played for in the last seven seasons.
Westbrook averaged a career-low 11.1 points, five rebounds and a career-low 4.5 assists last season largely off the bench with the Clippers. He opened the season as their starting point guard, but he moved into a bench role after the team landed James Harden. Westbrook averaged just 22.5 minutes per game, too, which was the lowest he’s seen throughout his 16 seasons in the league.
The organization has been trying to find a trading partner for the 35-year-old veteran since the season ended, and the Nuggets quickly emerged as a favorite. Westbrook can now team up with three-time league MVP Nikola Jokić and fill a much-needed hole in their backcourt while coming off the bench yet again. Though he’s not the player he once was by any means, the Nuggets are hoping he can provide some significant depth in their second unit.
Dunn averaged 5.4 points and 3.8 assists last season with the Jazz. The 30-year-old, who was first selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the No. 5 overall pick in 2016, has agreed to a three-year, $17 million deal with the Clippers as part of this deal, according to Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes.
The Jazz will also receive a second-round pick swap and cash in the deal.
The move was the latest the Clippers have made this season, following star Paul George‘s decision to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers in free agency. They have signed Derrick Jones Jr. and Nicolas Batum in free agency since George’s departure. The Clippers, who will move into the Intuit Dome next season in Inglewood, Calif., have been knocked out in the first round of the playoffs in each of the last two seasons.
