Russell Westbrook going to Rockets for Chris Paul
FILE – In this Monday, May 5, 2014 file photo, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) drives against Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) in the first quarter of Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinal NBA basketball playoff series in Oklahoma City. A person with knowledge of the situation says the Oklahoma City Thunder have traded Russell Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul, a shake up of top point guards and a move that reunites Westbrook with James Harden, Thursday, July 11, 2019. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File)
LAS VEGAS — A person with knowledge of the situation says the Oklahoma City Thunder have traded Russell Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul, a shake up of top point guards and a move that reunites Westbrook with James Harden.
The Thunder also are getting first-round picks in 2024 and 2026, plus the right to swap first-rounders in two other seasons, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because the trade has not been announced.
Article continues after this advertisementESPN first reported the agreement.
It is part of a massive shake up by Oklahoma City, which traded Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers and now sends Westbrook — its franchise player — to another West rival while adding to an enormous stockpiling of draft picks. The Thunder got five first-rounders in the trade with the Clippers for George.
And it splits up the pairing of Paul and Harden in Houston, a team with title aspirations. Westbrook and Harden were Thunder teammates, part of a team along with Kevin Durant that went to the 2012 NBA Finals and lost to LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat.
