The Clippers understood what they were getting when they signed Russell Westbrook in February, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. The 34-year-old guard may be an unreliable shooter who commits frustrating turnovers, but he’s also an extreme competitor that has brought some much-needed energy to the team.
That was on display Sunday night as Westbrook made one big play after another in the closing minutes to help L.A. win in Phoenix. The most significant was a block of Devin Booker‘s layup attempt with 10 seconds left, followed by a quick reaction to throw the ball out of bounds off Booker and give possession to the Clippers. Although he shot 3-of-19 from the field, Westbrook had 11 rebounds — five on the offensive end — along with eight assists, three blocks and two steals.
“It is [heart], it’s timing, it’s the will to win,” he said. “Be able to make plays. Understanding time, scoring, possession. At this position, humbly speaking, nobody a better rebounder than me.”
Westbrook was struggling through one of the worst shooting seasons of his career when the Lakers shipped him to Utah at the trade deadline. From the time he joined the Clippers after a buyout, coach Tyronn Lue has urged him to find other ways to contribute when his shot isn’t falling, and it’s a message he emphasized Sunday night.
“He was mad about missing shots,” Lue said. “And I said, ‘Listen, your shot is not important. Take good shots, take the right shots, but what you bring to our team is way more valuable, and that’s rebounding the basketball.’ That’s the three offensive rebounds at the end of game against the extra possession, the defense on (Kevin Durant), the stop on Book at the end, and defensively, he was locked in.”
There’s more on the Clippers:
- Kawhi Leonard was brilliant in his first playoff game since suffering an ACL injury in the 2021 Western Conference semifinals, Youngmisuk adds. The Clippers have been careful with Leonard, who played just 52 games this season, but he was on the court for 42 minutes Sunday, delivering 38 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter. “That’s what we’ve been saving up for,” Lue said. “This moment here in the playoffs, we have to play heavy minutes, especially with (Paul George) being out, being short-handed, and he was great tonight.”
- A report Sunday indicates that George is likely to miss the entire first round with a sprained right knee, and the players understand that they may have to grind out a few victories without their star teammate, per Mirjam Swanson of The Orange County Register. “We gotta work,” Ivica Zubac said. “Missing PG, it’s big for us, so we know our chances to win this series is be physical, be aggressive, bring a lot of energy.”
- The Suns are investigating an incident between a fan and Westbrook when he took a shortcut to the locker room through a club lounge area at halftime, tweets Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. The team issued a statement that read, “We are aware of the incident that happened tonight and are conducting a review.”
I have the Suns in this series but after watching game one it just looks like the Clippers want it more.
DeAndre Ayton and Devin Booker are young and think they have plenty of time, Kevin Durant has been there and done that, Chris Paul is desperate for a title but he’s looking older out there. Kudos to him though for staying healthy and on the floor, I’ll give him that.
Let’s see if the Suns can come back with some energy and match the Clippers desperation to make a mark in Los Angeles hoops history.
It’s a long series and I try not to over react after the first game. Let’s see if Kawhi and Clippers can keep up the energy in Game 2.
Ty Lue is a top-5 coach in the West
Monty Williams is a top-10 coach in the West.
Look at the Timeout impact.
Top-5 means one of the World Bests
Who is better?
Westbrook or Chris Paul?
Zubac or Ayton?
Westbrook seems to always be in the middle of these fan incidents.
Cause he the only one with the balls to do something about it
Stupidity and confidence are two very different things
Explain to me what is stupid about it?
Because what is he supposed to do? Nothing? Ok, well if he does nothing then what? Fans are going to continue to act the way they do, right?
Because that’s how people are, if they continue to not face any effects from their actions, they will continue with their actions. But when some is then confronted, that’s when people actually learn and realize, “hey maybe i shouldn’t act that way!”
@Kurtis how do you know what the fan said?
Because I’m a genius and I know everything
Doubtful. Highly doubtful
Love that the mods only feel the need to delete my comments, comments that are usually replies coming directly after me rather than anything I’ve said. But what can you do
He was probably in the middle of the same type of incidents all thru his youth schooling years
and he made 335 million dollars.
Playing a game
Why cant Westbrook be more gracious after the game and not make it about himself? It’s always about “me me” rather than the team. Yes, he has played better as a Clipper and he made some superb dedensive plays and rebounds last night, but I wish he would be more humble and act like he belong. Instead of talking about his greatness, he should of said that it’s a long series, they need to cut down on mistakes, he needs to shoot better, and give all the credit to his teammates.
His play last night said “team team”
Yes, but he ruined it after the game. It’s only game 1 and you want to gloat? Another blown opportunity to work on his image. :(
Dude Westbrook has received more hate than anyone in the league over the last two years. His effort last night was the difference between a win and a lose. Let him talk. How dissatisfied are you with your life that when someone openly talks about how well they’ve done, you think its them telling you that you suck. Insecure people need to stay offline
Lol if it’s between winning the game and caring about image I prefer they win the game idk that’s just me.
Pretty sure Young and the Restless is on every day though if you’re just watching for the human interest stories…
As long as George isn’t playing Clippers got a good chance to win
Man still bugs me that Russ was bought out lol
Westbrook and Phoenix fan incident? Probably that “Suns in 4” guy.