2024-11-08 07:55:02
AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post
Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone heaped praise on veteran guard Russell Westbrook following Wednesday’s 124-122 home win over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
According to Bennett Durando of the Denver Post, Malone was especially impressed with Westbrook’s defensive effort, saying:
“I think defensively he’s been a rockstar. And what I love about Russell Westbrook: 17-year vet, leopards don’t change their spots, but he is trying so hard to be disciplined. He’s trying to do the things we’re asking him to do, and I appreciate that so much. Because a lot of times at 17 years in, you are who you are. But he cares, man. He is so invested in this team and what he’s bringing to this team, and he’s so hard on himself. I can coach a guy like Russell Westbrook any day.”
The Nuggets were without guard Jamal Murray and forward Aaron Gordon on Wednesday due to injury, which pushed multiple players into bigger roles, including Westbrook.
Starting only his third game of the season, Westbrook led Denver with 29 points on 10-of-15 shooting to go along with six assists, six rebounds and one steal.
The Thunder were undefeated at 7-0 entering Wednesday’s contest, and they were essentially fully healthy with stars Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams playing a full allotment of minutes.
Denver only used an eight-man rotation during the game and all five starters played at least 32 minutes, but it managed to overcome the disadvantage and secure its biggest win of the year thus far.
Westbrook, who will turn 36 next week, is in the midst of his 17th NBA season overall and his first with the Nuggets.
He was once a superstar with the Thunder, winning two scoring titles and an NBA MVP Award, but in more recent years, Westbrook has taken on a lesser role, primarily as a bench player.
After finishing a solid seventh in the Sixth Man of the Year voting last season with the Los Angeles Clippers, the Nuggets brought him in with designs on him filling a similar role.
Although Westbrook got off to a slow start this season, he has scored 20 or more points in each of the past two games and three of the past five. He has also mad 60 percent of his shots or more in each of the past two games after shooting a horrendous 23.2 percent over his first six outings.
In addition to his offensive improvement, Westbrook has been committed defensively as well, averaging 1.8 steals per game, which is his best production in that category since his final season in OKC in 2018-19.
Westbrook will almost certainly fade back into a bench role once Murray returns to action, but he is going to see significant minutes for the rest of the season regardless, and he could have a big hand in whether the Nuggets win their second championship in three seasons.
