The Los Angeles Clippers traded guard Russell Westbrook to the Utah Jazz on Thursday, ESPN reported, with the veteran guard eventually in line to join the Denver Nuggets.
According to the report, Westbrook is expected to agree on a contract buyout with the Jazz and then sign a free-agent deal with the Nuggets. Westbrook was in line to make $4.03 million next season in the second year of a two-year contract with the Clippers.
The Clippers are also swapping second-round picks and sending cash to the Jazz, while Los Angeles acquired guard Kris Dunn in a sign-and-trade deal.
Westbook’s ultimate move to Denver will come after he clears waivers. Westbrook, 35, joined the Clippers late in the 2022–23 season after he was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Jazz and then waived.
A product of Leuzinger High School in Lawndale, Calif., who played collegiately at UCLA, Westbrook returned to a starting role with the Clippers during a short 21-game stint late in 2022–23, then transitioned to a bench role last season and finished seventh in Sixth Man of the Year voting. Westbrook averaged 11.1 points with 5.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists for the Clippers in 68 games, including 11 starts, last season.
In 16 NBA seasons, the nine-time All-Star and 2016–17 most valuable player has averaged 21.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 8.1 assists in 1,162 games for the Oklahoma City Thunder (2008–19), Houston Rockets (2019–20), Washington Wizards (2020–21), Lakers (2021–23), and Clippers.
Dunn, 30, averaged 5.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 3.8 assists in 66 games, including 32 starts, for the Jazz last season. In eight NBA seasons with five different teams, Dunn has averaged 7.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 4.2 assists in 333 games.
