Recently, Carmelo Anthony said on his podcast that choosing to rejoin the team at this point in time wouldn't be good for either the Thunder or Westbrook.

Carmelo Anthony said, "I don't think Russell should go back to the Thunder, he can't help this team. The Thunder are the defending champions right now. You can't bring Russell Westbrook back to Oklahoma City and not play him. He can't go from being the greatest player in franchise history to a player who doesn't know if he's going to play or not. It won't work. If you do, you're tarnishing the basketball legacy that he left for the Thunder."

"Let's protect the legend of this type of player. He's not the type of player that's only been in the league for five or six years, no. This is a guy who has been able to carry the pain and pressure that others can't even imagine, has the number one selling jersey, and is the MVP of the league."

"There's an inherent difference between chasing a championship and enjoying the game. Can you send the greatest player in team history back to the bench at this point? No way. As a player, if I know I can still play, I can't accept that. dame went back to Portland because he can still play when he gets healthy, and CP3 went back to the speedboats because he can still play. Neither of them will go back to the bench."