Westbrook scores 26, Thunder beat Bucks 109-89 (Yahoo! Sports)
MILWAUKEE (AP) First, Oklahoma City hit shots over the Milwaukee Bucks. Then the Thunder got under their skin.
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Russell Westbrook: The Deciding Factor in the Thunder’s Playoff Run
It took me all of about five episodes to learn the different roles of the characters in Workaholics, a show I quickly learned to love. Of the three main characters, Anders is the most professional, but nothing ever seems to be going well for him. Adam, my personal favorite, is the most immature of the group and therefore the funniest; Adam is usually the one suggesting the three to do whatever they do, and it usually never turns out well. Lastly is Blake, the one who follows the crowd and is slightly immature himself. Like stated before, it didn’t take long for these roles to be identified.
In the same way, each player on every team in the NBA has their own role, whatever it may encompass. Some players have much larger roles for their team, like Deron Williams, whose team would be completely lost without him. On the other hand are players like Luol Deng, where they play a big factor in their teams’ success, but at the same time, their team is not completely dependent on them. In Deng’s case, Derrick Rose is the main cog of the team. There are also players like Ronny Turiaf who provide leadership and energy to their team, but not much talent. And then we have Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, who have been playing alongside each other for four years and are still trying to find their roles. Both players are incredibly gifted scorers, which has turned out to be more of a curse than a blessing for the Thunder organization. It is not bad to have a point guard who can drop 30 (on any given night) by any means, but when you that point guard has the best scorer in the game playing next to him, then a problem presents itself.
Logically, with many points comes many shots, and in Russell Westbrook’s case, too many shots. For a player that once averaged 3.4 points per game (at UCLA), Westbrook sure is shot-happy. Skip Bayless tackled this subject recently, repeatedly criticizing the shoot-first point guard. Durant, who happened to catch the segment, said in response:
“We’re worse when I take more shots. Like I said, that guy doesn’t know a thing. I don’t think he watches us. I think he just looks at the stats. And traditionally, a point guard is not supposed to take more shots than everybody else on the team. But we’re better when he does do that and he’s aggressive. And I’m better when I’m out there facilitating, rebounding, defending and being more efficient on my shots with less shots.”
However, no matter what KD says or how he tries to defend his point guard, statistics have proven that Westbrook does indeed, need to take less shots. Last night’s game against the Pacers justifies that. In an uncalled for loss, the Westbrook chucked up 23 shots and only made 7, whereas Kevin Durant went 15 for 24. The Thunder have only lost 15 games this season (last night’s being one of them), and in those 15 games Westbrook averages 21.2 shots a game (only making 9), compared to 18.9 shots per game in 40 wins. How many shots Westbrook decides to take will directly correlate with the Thunder’s success in the playoffs.
On the year, KD has taken 1077 shots compared to Westbrook’s 1074. If you don’t think this is a problem, well, you’re crazy. When discussing the best scorers in the league, Kevin Durant is almost always in the top three of anybody’s list; I would be surprised if anybody put Westbrook in the top ten. With that being said, Durant has made 42 more shots than Westbrook despite their identical field goal attempts.
If the Thunder want any chance at a title in the next five years (which is definitely possible), they ultimately have two choices: teach Westbrook how to be a true point guard or make a trade for him. There is no middle ground.
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Video: Westbrook takes out LeBron
You can judge for yourself whether this defense by Russell Westbrook deserves a flagrant call or not.
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Westbrook pushes LeBron, gets flagrant
The game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Miami Heat is getting a bit chippy. LeBron James was on the fast break when Russell Westbrook dragged him down to the ground. Westbrook was hit with a Flagrant-1 and he’s lucky he did not get ejected. Luckily, LeBron was okay and is still playing at a high level.
This is NBA Finals caliber basketball. These teams flat out do not like each other. It feels like a fight could break out at any moment. In fact, I would not be shocked if it did. That is how intense this game is. It is one of the better games that has happened this year. Maybe the best game in a couple of years.
It is far from over. Both teams are throwing massive haymakers at each other. Westbrook and Kevin Durant are doing their best to keep up with Miami, but LeBron is on a different level right now. If he slows down, OKC has a great shot. He just needs to slow down here sometime soon. His efficiency is off the charts.
I expect this to go down to…
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Behold the Wonder That Is Russell Westbrook
Looking for yesterday’s quote of the day?
You don’t have to look any further than Russell Westbrook.
During the Thunder’s 92-78 victory over the Derrick Rose-less Bulls, Westbrook scored a game-high 27 points to go with five assists (without a turnover) and four steals. He was brilliant, scoring from everywhere on the floor, and delighted the crowd with a gorgeous halfcourt alley-oop to Kevin Durant that made the arena explode.
His best play, though? That came with 1:04 remaining in the third quarter. Westbrook received the ball from Durant at the three-point line and took off toward the hoop. One dribble, rise, elevate, elevate, continue to elevate and then slam the ball through the net over a completely helpless Omer Asik.
It was nasty. Violent. Explosive. It was bold and brash. It was Westbrook at his best. It was an example of why certain players shouldn’t be stifled, even when his shot selection might make you raise an eyebrow. Educated and coached, yes. Stifled? Nah. Westbrook is a supremely talented 23 year-old point guard who can score in droves. He plays with one of the best players in the game. As a result, we take him for granted sometimes. We want him to be a better point guard, more efficient passer, make sounder decisions. While marvelling at Durant, it can be easy to lose sight of how special of a player Westbrook is, too.
Shooting 47.7 percent from the floor (fourth among all point guards), Westbrook is averaging 24.5 points per game, the most of anyone at his position. He’s also third among point guards for free throws attempted per game, averaging 6.1 trips to the line each night, connecting on 82.3 percent of his attempts. Again, he’s 23 years old.
It baffles me that people still want to point fingers at Westbrook whenever things don’t work out for the Thunder when it’s so obvious that everyone in his locker room knows exactly how important he is to his team. Beyond his numbers, Westbrook brings a ballsy brazenness to Oklahoma City. While Kendrick Perkins brought grit to the team, Westbrook brings something else. A blend of laidback Cali cool laced with a strong dose of “get out of my way” confidence, Westbrook is the perfect compliment to Durant’s humility. Even if we want to spend all of our time highlighting their differences.
A thick skin is needed to take the type of criticism that’s been directed at Westbrook. He’s got it. He also has the ability to shrug off compliment and criticism alike to focus on the task at hand.
Against the Bulls, that task was getting to the hoop to make a statement.
When Westbrook was asked about the play after the game, his response was classic.
“Ahh, that’s a little something I do.”
Yes, yes it is. While we admire those highlight-reel worthy plays, let’s also not forget all that he does for his team on the floor and all that he brings to them off of it as well.
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Russell Westbrook posterizes Omer Asik
Westbrook is a man on a mission.
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Westbrook scores 36 to lead Thunder
Russell Westbrook scored 36 points, Kevin Durant added 21 and the West-leading Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 102-93 on Thursday night for their fifth consecutive victory in the matchup of division leaders.
The Thunder shot 46 percent, ending their streak of hitting 50 percent or better in their four previous games.
Andrew Bynum had 25 points and 13 rebounds and Kobe Bryant added 23 points for the Lakers, who have lost their last two at home and are 0-2 against the Thunder this season, including a 15-point road loss last month.
Oklahoma City pulled away to open the fourth quarter with a 10-0 run that stretched its lead to 88-70 while Westbrook kept Bryant tied up offensively. Westbrook and Durant scored four points each in the spurt that had Laker fans booing.
The Lakers responded with a 14-4 run to close to 96-89, with Metta World Peace hitting two 3-pointers and Bryant not scoring. Westbrook and Durant missed shots, but the NBA’s highest scoring duo regrouped in time to score their team’s final 10 points.
Westbrook scored 17 points in the third, when the Thunder dominated, 34-19, in taking a 78-68 lead into the final 12 minutes. Durant was limited to a lone 3-pointer while Westbrook scored at will, alternately slashing to the basket or hitting from the perimeter. His 3-pointer beat the buzzer to end the quarter. Kendrick Perkins had 10 of his 12 points in the third.
The Thunder were limited to 36 percent shooting in the first half, when they trailed 49-44. The Lakers got off to a strong start, leading 30-18 after one quarter behind nine points by Bryant and eight from Bynum. Oklahoma City outscored the Lakers 26-19 in the second quarter and took off from there.
NOTES: The Thunder twice hit buzzer-beating baskets. Serge Ibaka had one to end the first half before Westbrook’s 3 ended the third. … The Thunder closed March with an 11-5 record. … Former Laker Derek Fisher was welcomed back with two standing ovations in his first visit to Staples Center since being traded away recently. He had seven points in 16 minutes off the bench for the Thunder. … Lakers coach Mike Brown said someone opened a Twitter account in his name that has since been shut down. ”It’s a sign that I’ve made it,” he said. ”But I will never have a Twitter account. I promise.”
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Are Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook Better Than LeBron James and Dwyane Wade?
It’s hard to even fathom such a statement one year ago.
Heck, it’s hard to fathom this statement even a week ago.
But are Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook a better duo than LeBron James and Dwyane Wade?
The Oklahoma City Thunder‘s tandem is quietly taking over the NBA. The two are well-known All-Stars who are trying to push their games to the next level. They’re young, talented and full of passion.
Oklahoma City has become a top title contender, and the guys running the show are only 23 years old! That’s right, they’re kids. The pair is young but nothing about their game is immature. The guys play with intelligence, spark and extreme urgency.
The great thing about Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook is their effort night in and night out. They give a maximum effort and find ways to play big every game.
This tends to be the opposite for the opposing duo of James and Wade.
LeBron James and Dwyane Wade are future Hall of Famers who have very few flaws, but the troubling thing is their lack of urgency, even at their age.
One would think the OKC duo is the elder of the bunch by their play. The Heatles duo often starts games dry and rarely finishes with the Thunder’s zeal. When OKC takes a loss, they come back with a vengeance. When Miami loses a big game, they tend to let it negatively affect them the next night.
When OKC was embarrassed in Utah a week ago, Durant was very upset. The next game the L.A. Clippers felt the wrath of the Thunder.
Miami also suffered an infamous loss to the same Jazz earlier this season, only to be destroyed by the L.A. Lakers the next game.
Sure, Westbrook and Durant have their issues, but so do Miami’s guys, and who would want their problems?
If I’m a Thunder fan, I would be happy Russell Westbrook is not timid about shooting the ball. He misses sometimes, but who doesn’t? The guys in South Beach, meanwhile, can’t figure out who wants to shoot!
The tide seems to be shifting, however fleeting.
Everything this season has pointed to a younger, hungrier duo shocking the guys in Miami.
I would love to answer the question of who is the best, but unfortunately, that time has not quite come.
Only in the playoffs will this question be atoned for, when it matters most.
Don’t forget to follow me @ www.twitter.com/jaysmithsports
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Durant, Westbrook lead Thunder past Love and Wolves in 2OT
Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant combined for 85 points, as Oklahoma City beat Minnesota in double-OT, despite Kevin Love’s 51 points.
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Wolves can’t withstand Durant, Westbrook
When Kevin Love hit a game-tying three-pointer with a second left in regulation, Kevin Durant smiled.
Of all the things to do after your team has blown a lead, with the chances of winning before overtime as slim as any, to smile would seem like the least obvious choice. But Durant is a competitor, and this was a challenge. It was as if he knew what was to come, that he and his team would be able to wear down the Timberwolves, that two overtimes would be too much.And they were. After taking a five-point lead in the game’s first overtime, the Timberwolves faded fast, allowing Oklahoma City to tie the game again and push it to double overtime. Once those final five minutes began, it was over. The Timberwolves never led again and went on to lose, 149-140.”I think we ran out of energy,” J.J. Barea said. “They just kept attacking, and Durant kept hitting some tough shots. We had the game won in that first overtime It’s basketball. That’s how it is.”It was the most exciting game of the season, just seconds from what could have been the team’s biggest win of the year. But really, it shouldn’t have happened.Not in Oklahoma City on the last day of a grueling, two-week road trip.Not without Ricky Rubio and Nikola Pekovic, not without the team’s top bench scorer, Michael Beasley.Not against Kevin Durant, who finished with 40 points. Not when Russell Westbrook tops that and finishes with 45.But it did. It took a combined 289 points and ten extra minutes of basketball for the best team in the Western Conference to finally silence the Timberwolves. It took a new franchise scoring record for Kevin Love read it, 51 points and a triple-double for Barea, the first by a Timberwolves player since Kevin Durant in 2007. It took 60 bench points in what was the team’s best offensive performance of the season, and that the Thunder were able to overcome all those things proves that they’re among the best in the league.”It was tough,” Love said. “We had chances to win the game. We had a couple calls not go our way. Kevin (Durant), Russell (Westbrook) and James Harden and the rest of their team made plays. That’s why they’re the top team in the West.”Before the game, Timberwolves’ coach Rick Adelman admitted he was worried that his team just wanted to go home. This seven-game road trip had been a cruel test of the team’s mettle, and it went into Friday with a 2-4 record after hoping to hover near .500 on the trip. But Adelman’s fears weren’t realized, as his team endured 58 minutes of basketball as if it hadn’t been away from home for two weeks.It was a night of shattered records, and Love’s 51 points pushed him past Kevin Garnett, who held the previous franchise record for points in a game, with 47. He also sunk seven three-pointers, which was a career-high and the reason the team managed to push the game to overtime. But it wasn’t just Love. It was Barea’s 25 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds. It was Anthony Tolliver’s 23 points, the most he’s scored since 2010. It was a team that realized what it was missing but didn’t discount the talent it still had.”Coach just said in the locker room, myself included, I’m proud of the guys right now,” Love said. “They really stepped up. You know, we’re shorthanded right now.”The Timberwolves will fly back to Minneapolis Friday night and prepare for Denver on Sunday. The road trip will finally be over, and though Minnesota may not have done so well against the test it presented, it at least managed to go down with its best fight of the season. Its record during the stretch will still be 2-5; that doesn’t account for Friday night’s effort, and it shouldn’t, but it’s refreshing to see how much it takes to count Love and his team out of even the most competitive games.Love said postgame that he was encouraged by the effort his team put forth, and he hopes the team can remember what that felt like and put forth a similar fight in its final 17 games. However, it was hard for him to be excited, his downcast gaze and matter-of-fact analysis hallmarks of the frustration he exhibits after every loss. Even those 51 points, the seven three-pointers weren’t enough to shake the nagging pain of the loss.”It would mean a lot more in a win,” Love said of his performance.Of course it would. And no one would expect Love to feel any other way.Follow Joan Niesen on Twitter.
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