The Washington Wizards haven't had much luck putting together a championship roster of their own over the last few years, but the team has seen multiple former players play pivotal roles in title runs with diffferent teams in that time.
Most recently, the Wizards were forced to watch former big man Kristaps Porzingis win a ring with the Boston Celtics less than a year after trading him away.
Prior to that, Washington saw the same thing happen with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope who joined the Denver Nuggets and played a key role for the team in their run to an NBA Championship in 2023.
This season, the Wizards and their fanbase could be forced to watch it happen once again, all thanks to another former player who seems to have bounced back in his role with the Nuggets this past season.
Russell Westbrook impacts winning for Nuggets
Russell Westbrook spent one season in Washington during the 2020-21 season, where he averaged 22.2 points, 11.7 assists and 11.5 rebounds. The team acquired the star guard from the Houston Rockets in the deal that ended John Wall's time in Washington.
When the Wizards landed Westbrook, they hoped that the backcourt duo of him and Bradley Beal could spark something special for the D.C. based team, but after one season the expirment came to and end when the Los Angeles Lakers aggressively pursued the guard.
Since departing from the Wizards, it's safe to say that Westbrook has looked like a shell of his former self as he's seen himself traded on multiple occassions after being benched by both the Lakers and LA Clippers.
However, heading into last offseason, the former MVP made it a point of emphasis to land in the right spot in free agency. Hoping to find somewhere he could contribute and win, the UCLA product landed with the Nuggets to team up with another former MVP in Nikola Jokic.
Westbrook has put together an underrated season with Denver, averaging 13.3 points, 6.1 assists and 4.9 rebounds, while shooting 44.9% from field goal range and 32.3% from three in mostly a bench role for the Western Conference contender.
Although the 36-year-old's regular season was impressive, it was unknown how he'd contribute in the postseason when the team was forced to cut their rotation down to a 6-8 man lineup.
So far through one game, Westbrook looks like he could be a key piece to help the Nuggets silence the noise surrounding them with a deep playoff run of their own.
In Game 1 against the Clippers on Saturday, Westbrook finished with 15 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, including multiple timely plays down the stretch to help Denver come back and knock off the Clippers in overtime.
If he continues to play at this level, the Nuggets could find success yet again with another former Wizards guard boosting them on a postseason run.