Credit: Getty Images
After Durant and Jackson, Thunders face yet another injury this season.
Oklahoma City Thunder’s most consistent player Russell Westbrook has been injured for the second season in a row. After Thursday’s night game against the Los Angeles Clippers, J.A Adande of ESPN updated a discouraging tweet revealing that Russell faces a small fracture in his right hand. Adande also describe the scene by tweeting that Russell was back to the bench with his hand wrapped in ice.
Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman provided the news that Russell Westbrook could miss four to six weeks. This means that Russell would be added to the long list of Thunder players who are injured and would miss the first month of this season. He further explained that his injury would cost Westbrook to miss out on 15 games minimum and could reach 21.
Westbrook is expected to return to the lineup between November 28 and December 12. Westbrook will undergo further tests on Friday in Oklahoma City. He was seen exiting the match in the second quarter when he hit his hand against Kendrick Perkin’s elbow on a rebound attempt.
So, small fracture in second metacarpal in Russell Westbrook’s right hand, per Scott Brooks.— J.A. Adande (@jadande) October 31, 2014
After exiting the game Westbrook stayed in the locker room and stayed there for the remainder of the first half before being ruled out. The thunders went on losing the game 93-90, a close win for the Clippers. The Thunders will have Westbrook undergo further testing on Friday. The Thunders have an off day before they face the Denver Nuggets in a home game.
With so many injured players The Thunders have never needed Westbrook more than they needed him now. With Kevin Durant’s absence due to a Jones fracture and Reggie Jackson’s ankle problems, Westbrook was the only reliable shot creator on the roster, which is established by the fact that he scored 38 points against the season opening match against Portland.
Close-up video from Staples Center of Russell Westbrook’s exchange with fan http://t.co/EtqZOI3YKz— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) October 31, 2014
Westbrook who faced the same fate previous year finds himself looking at a potentially serious injury. The All-Star point guard has played every one of the Thunder’s regular season games since his first five years in the league. His love for basketball goes all the way back to his days at Leuzinger High School in Lawndale, California.
Last year Westbrook had to face a torn meniscus in his right knee during the playoffs. His injury then had derailed the Thunder’s chance of winning an NBA title. Westbrook missed 36 games last year and even still the Thunder’s secured the second place in the league. He averaged 25.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, 8.1 assists and 2.2 steals per 26 minutes last season.
All I can figure is this is penance for whatever voodoo the Thunder used to get Serge Ibaka back in the Western Conference finals last year.— Royce Young (@royceyoung) October 31, 2014
Thunder’s head coach stated that he believes that Westbrook is the best point guard in basketball. He explained that it’s happened over time as I have seen his every practice, every game and he has really put a lot of effort in becoming the best point guard in basketball. Perry Jones, who is playing in place of Kevin Durant, stated that losing Russell as such a time will certainly hurt the team a lot as he was our leader out there. The Thunder’s need Westbrook to recover as soon as possible if they want to win their first NBA title this season.
Source: BleacherReport
You Might Also Like
Victoria’s Secret Models Close-Up
