Summary
'21-'22 was a disaster year for Westbrook, but the last couple seasons were slightly better, particularly after he joined the Clippers. Even before his time with the Lakers, Westbrook was one of the more polarizing players in the NBA. Although he used to put up elite numbers, there has always been a debate as to how much he contributes to winning. Even as he ages into his mid-thirties and despite a slight loss in athleticism, he still is a force in transition and can put a lot of pressure at the rim when he gets a head of steam. He can make plays for others, and is one of the best rebounding point guards in NBA history.

However, he does have many faults that can hurt his team or make him a tough fit playing next to certain players. Primarily, he is not a threat playing off the ball due to his poor outside shooting, and whatever shooting ability he had in his prime seems to have completely abandoned him. He has been a sub-par three-point shooter for his entire career, and his midrange shooting, which used to be a somewhat viable weapon for him, has also fallen off a cliff. Westbrook also hasn't been able to find other ways to be useful when he doesn't have the ball, such as being a good cutter or setting screens.

Perhaps more notable though than his outside shooting, Westbrook only shot 59% at the rim over the past three seasons, which is just barely above average for his position, according to Cleaning the Glass. When he doesn't finish, he's often out of control and finds himself on the ground under the basket, which leads to 5-on-4 fastbreaks for his opponent. Getting back in transition is not his only defensive issue. Although Westbrook can be disruptive in passing lanes, he gambles too often and can be spacey when defending off the ball.

Although he gets a lot of rebounds, sometimes that is due to him hanging around the rim going for rebounds rather than closing out to an open shooter. He gets a lot of assists but is not considered to be a great passer. He has a high assist rate but his assist to usage rate decreased in the last couple years. 

Westbrook's showed more acceptance of a smaller role in '22-'23 the last couple years, and at times had good moments for the Clippers. His efficiency numbers in '23-'24 were rough but he was a solid bench piece at times. Westbrook will be 35 years old as a potential free agent in 2024, and it's hard to think of many teams that would have any interest in Westbrook, let alone give him a big contract, so he may just be signing small contracts for contenders going forward.
 
Cap Considerations
Westbrook has a $4 million player option for '24-'25, and if he opts out he will be an unrestricted free agent with a $5 million cap hold and Early Bird rights. Since the Clippers will be operating over the salary cap, they will retain Westbrook's Early Bird rights until he is re-signed or signs elsewhere. The Clippers could offer Westbrook a starting salary of up to 5% more than the average salary (likely around $13 million) using the Early Bird exception, which will be more than enough should they wish to bring him back.

Other teams will have multiple ways to sign Westbrook as even teams without cap space could use the Non-Taxpayer MLE, Room MLE, or possibly even the Taxpayer MLE or Bi-Annual Exception to sign him. It's unlikely that Westbrook would opt out and take less than the BAE.