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The Russell Westbrook vs Damian Lillard is one of the biggest on-court rivalries in the NBA right now. Both are elite All-NBA level point guards who have had multiple on-court encounters and it has gone both ways. After a long NBA hiatus, this feud has now resumed after Lillard lashed out on Twitter at someone who said Westbrook is a better player. The original tweet by Keaton Hickman has now been deleted.16

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There is no exact date as to when this rivalry began. But when they clashed in January 2019, it became official. As Lillard approached the free-throw line, Westbrook yelled, “I’ve been busting that a** for years!”

Damian Lillard vs Russell Westbrook: Who is better?

The biggest achievement Westbrook has in his resume is his 2017 MVP trophy. Despite the Thunder being only the sixth seed, Westbrook’s monstrous stat line of 31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 10.4 assists per game won him the award. It was the first time since Oscar Robertson in 1962, that a player averaged a triple-double for the season. The closest Lillard has come to an MVP is a 4th place finish in the 2018 voting.

But the last two seasons, Lillard has taken over. His shooting ability is one of the best in the league. Once he enters the opponent half court, he is a threat from anywhere. He is slowly taking over from Curry as the best shooter from being 30 feet. His playmaking has not gone unnoticed either. Despite being the primary scoring option on his team, he has an eye for the pass every time and is averaging 7.8 assists this season.

The biggest clash between the two was in the first round of the playoffs last season. As Westbrook’s Thunder took on Lillard’s Blazers, the two of them went at each other the whole time. But ultimately; Lillard came out on top, sealing the series with a buzzer-beater from over 30 feet to send the Thunder packing in five games.

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Both of them have the Mamba Mentality. They both are extremely competitive but their rivalry is restricted to the court. Outside of it, they have respect for each other. After Lillard got his first career triple-double in January this season, Westbrook walked up to him and hugged him to congratulate him, despite his Rockets team losing the game.

They both will face each other again on August 5, when the Rockets face the Blazers. The clash between these two will be the highlight of the game.

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