‘Is Russell Westbrook playing tonight’ has been the question that every Rockets fan is wondering about. Here we look at what Mike D’Antoni had to say.
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Westbrook played in only 4 of the 8 seeding games before the playoffs. After featuring in the first 3 of the seeding games, he was rested against the Lakers and the Kings with a quad contusion. He featured in the game against the Spurs on 10th August, which was the second leg of a back-to-back set.
Westbrook sustained this quad injury in the second half of the Rockets’ loss to the Blazers on August 4th. He played on despite it, but he aggravated it in the outing against the Spurs.
Is Russell Westbrook playing tonight vs Thunder?
Houston Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni confirmed to members of the press ahead of the game against the Thunder that Westbrook is out. There is no set timetable for the Brody’s return yet, although the expectation is that he will be back at some point in the series.
Mike D’Antoni on Russell Westbrook’s possible availability at some point this series: “Can’t rule anything out, but don’t rule anything in.” He says Westbrook’s quad is healing, but Rockets still don’t know a timetable for his return.
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) August 18, 2020
Also Read: Russell Westbrook interrupts LeBron James’ press conference, LeBron asks him about quad injury
Russ’s absence will be a tough one for the Rockets to cope with. His ability to use dribble penetration and generate open 3-pointers for others on the team is unparalleled across the NBA. The Rockets rely on heavy doses of 3-point shooting.
Westbrook’s spell with the Rockets started out on a bit of a rough note. But once he stopped shooting 3-pointers and they traded away Capela for Covington, the lack of congestion in the paint helped him out immensely. Since the turn of the year, Westbrook has been averaging over 30 points a game.
