One moment, Victor Oladipo was going up for a defensive rebound without any member of the opposing team in the vicinity. The next, he had been knocked to the ground while not quite being sure what had just happened.
Russell Westbrook had happened. Don’t take Russ’ damn rebounds, you know?
We all know Westbrook is on his way to becoming the second player in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season. At this point, with Westbrook still averaging it comfortably and only a few weeks remaining, Westbrook is overwhelmingly expected to get it. If it takes knocking out a couple teammates to ensure he gets defensive rebounds, sure, that’s what Westbrook is going to do!
This example is the most cartoonishly exaggerated version of Westbrook stat padding at all costs — clearly, he’s a fantastic rebounder regardless, and the best-case scenario for Oklahoma City is for him to grab a rebound and immediately start a fast break. Those numbers are inflated — James Harden’s contested rebounding percentage, for example, is several points higher than Westbrook’s, according to NBA.com’s player tracking statistics — but with a chance at history on the line, we’re all rooting to keep letting Russ be Russ.
Speaking of, here’s peak Russ.
Bust a move, Russ pic.twitter.com/kcpJihIZOQ
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 26, 2017
They were playing Drake’s “Free Smoke” — can you blame him?