Commentary

Durant, Westbrook make must-see TV

As break-ups go, the Kevin Durant-Russell Westbrook split has worked out for the best -- the best result the NBA could hope for.

Durant has turned Golden State into an even more watchable, dynamic team as he shares the stage with various All-Stars.

Westbrook has become the league's most watchable, most dynamic player as he thrives as a solo act in Oklahoma City.

Once terrific together, they have been awesome apart.

Durant's exit from the Thunder has taken the craze of coattail-riding to an all-new level. Never during this trend has a superstar left another superstar's side to join forces with three reigning All-Stars.

It was a blow to small-market OKC and to the NBA's (laughable) notion of competitive balance.

Commissioner Adam Silver said Durant's defection wasn't a good look for the league, although the NBA only has itself to blame. Its ridiculous runaway salary cap gave the Warriors room to sign Durant.

As the last star standing in OKC, Westbrook has reminded us of a time when elite players stayed with their clubs, taking on all comers. Applaud him. Appreciate him.

A pending 2017 free agent, Westbrook surprisingly signed a contract extension with the Thunder a month after Durant left for the Warriors. In a perceived dig at Durant, he said, "Loyalty is something that I stand by."

Once teammates and now estranged friends, Durant and Westbrook have delivered brilliantly as they head down their new, uniquely different paths.

The Warriors have put to rest concerns that the free-agent addition of Durant would cause infighting over shot attempts, cover stories and groupie adulation, somehow derailing their title express. Instead, they have posted the NBA's best record (16-3 through Friday), reeling off a 12-game winning streak that ended in a double OT thriller against Houston on Thursday night.

The Warriors, who blew a 3-1 Finals lead against Cleveland last June, struggled the first week with a reshuffled roster. But since then, two-time MVP Steph Curry and fellow All-Stars Klay Thompson and Draymond Green have complemented Durant beautifully.

They've all sacrificed to a degree, but it's largely unnoticeable. Curry, Durant and Green are all down just a couple shots from their shot-attempts-per-game average from last season.

As a tell-tale sign of cooperation, Green seems focused on trying to win the Defensive Player of the Year award.

"Who cares who shoots?" Durant said. "Our offense is so free-flowing that the ball is going to find the open guy. ... Some nights I might have it and some nights Klay or Steph might have it, but I don't think anyone cares who shoots more shots."

Durant has the perfect make-up to share the ball and the glory on a team that won an NBA-record 73 games last season and a title in 2014-15. The Warriors' unselfish, entertaining style appealed to him as did their resolve. Golden State's strongest recruiting pitch to Durant came when it rallied from a 3-1 deficit to oust the Thunder in the playoffs.

Bent on proving he can carry OKC alone, Westbrook has responded to Durant's hurtful decision by impossibly ratcheting up his relentless play.

He has been the NBA's most compelling figure -- a nightly triple-double machine on an historic tear.

Westbrook, 28, will head into the month of December as the first player since Oscar Robertson to average a triple double: 31.2 points, 11.3 assists and 10.5 rebounds per game.

Averaging a triple-dub for a season hasn't been done in 55 years, not since The Big O posted 30.8 points, 11.4 assists and 12.5 rebounds per game in the 1961-62 season at age 23.

(Comparisons between Westbrook and Robertson are apples vs. oranges. Consider the eras. The NBA fielded just nine teams in 1961, for example. The pace of play was more frenetic, and Robertson played an average of 44.3 minutes per game compared to Westbrook's current 35.7.)

Westbrook's fourth consecutive triple-double -- his ninth this season -- came in the Thunder's OT victory Wednesday night against Washington. He came through in the clutch after a clunky start. "I never stop," he says.

Westbrook's critics accuse him of stat-stuffing and point to his bouts of Kobe-like inefficiency, but OKC needs his ball-dominance to win.

The Thunder are 12-8 and won't seriously challenge the loaded Warriors in the West race.

Certainly, Durant has a better chance at a title shot than Westbrook, but both their journeys are must-see TV.

Sports on 12/04/2016

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