Russell Westbrook is reportedly scheduled to meet with Clippers’ Paul George and Kawhi Leonard ahead of the NBA’s playoff eligibility waiver deadline on March 1, according to The Athletic’s Law Murray.
Westbrook received permission from the Jazz to speak with the Clippers on Thursday about what his role could potentially be in Los Angeles, per The Athletic. The Lakers sent the nine-time All-Star to Utah in a three-team deal ahead of the league’s trade deadline on Feb. 9, while receiving D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt. The Jazz also sent Mike Conley Jr. to the Timberwolves.
As Westbrook ponders his next move, Clippers star Paul George—Westbrook’s former teammate from 2017 to ’19 with the Thunder—has publicly confirmed that he is in support of the idea of playing with Westbrook if it “makes sense” and goes in the direction of where the team is headed.
“…We’re all for it,” George said on Saturday. “You know, we need a point guard. But you know, [at] the same [time], I think we’re good as well. If nothing happened, we got enough in this locker room to be able to make it work.
“But it would definitely improve our team if we had that traditional point guard to kind of get us in things and make the game easy. So hopefully Russell [Westbrook] sees this and we figure something out.”
Westbrook’s upcoming meeting with the Clippers’ duo comes after ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Thursday that four teams have been in discussion with the 34-year-old. Those teams include the Bulls, Clippers, Heat and the Wizards, Westbrook’s former team.
However, even in meeting with Los Angeles and the interest from the three other teams within the league, it is possible that Westbrook could play out the final year of his deal in Utah. Westbrook spent the majority of his time with Lakers coming off the bench, averaging 15.9 points, 7.5 assists and 6.2 rebounds per game while shooting nearly 42% from the floor.
The 2017 NBA MVP had emerged as a significant contender for the league’s Sixth Man of the Year.
