Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard had a chat with Chris Miller of NBC Sports Washington and said that Westbrook kept a “professional” attitude prior to leaving for Los Angeles. According to Sheppard, the 2017 NBA MVP only expressed interest in being traded if that meant he’d join the Lakers.

“Russell actually never asked to move on,” Sheppard told Miller. “He just said, ‘If I can get to the Lakers, that’d be something I would love to do. If not, I’ll be back here.'”

Sheppard also revealed that he proposed the Los Angeles Clippers as a potential destination, but Westbrook wasn’t open to that idea.

“So Russell was happy being here, and we were very grateful for him being here,” he added.

Westbrook ended up getting his wish and will now play in front of his hometown crowd alongside fellow superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Wizards, on the other hand, received a strong package in return that includes Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell, and Kyle Kuzma, which will allow them to build around their All-Star Bradley Beal.

Westbrook spent one season with the Wizards and averaged 22.2 points per game alongside a career-high 11.5 rebounds and 11.7 assists. Washington made it to the playoffs through a play-in tournament before being eliminated in the first round against the Philadelphia 76ers.

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Things didn’t start well for the Wizards, however, as they fell into a 14-point hole at halftime. The Lakers looked like they were firing on all cylinders at that point despite missing All-Star Anthony Davis and point guard Dennis Schroder.

But thanks to a productive third quarter from stars Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal, Washington found its way back into the game. They then forced overtime, where Westbrook and Beal scored all of the Wizards’ points and carried their team to a memorable win.

After the final buzzer, Westbrook was sitting at 32 points, 14 rebounds, and nine assists, while Beal scored 33 points and added three steals.

“It’s been tough, but we’ve been sticking together,” said Westbrook after the game. “That’s the main thing. If you get caught up with everything else going on, teams and players tend to come apart, but we’ve been sticking together and communicating on how to become a better team, and it’s been paying off for us.”

LeBron James, this year’s favorite for the MVP award, starred for the Lakers and had a near triple-double with 31 points, 9 rebounds, and 13 assists. He had help in Montrezl Harell, who scored his season-high 26 points.

Wizards, who started the campaign 6-17, have now improved to 11-17 and find themselves No. 13 in the East with just two games behind the No. 8 seed.

Lakers, on the other hand, are currently on a three-game losing streak. They fell to the No. 3 seed in the West with a 22-10 record.

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Everybody predicted the Wizards to lose before the tip-off against Brooklyn on Monday night. They were in bad form, dealing with injuries and COVID-19 issues, while the Nets had won the last four and seemed like they are just getting hot.

Things looked like advertised for the better part of the game, with Brooklyn leading as much as 18 points. But defensive issues and the resilience of Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal turned the easy win into a wild finish.

With 12 seconds left in the contest, the Nets were up by five, and it looked like they had this one in the bag. But Ish Smith quickly inbounded the ball and got it to Beal, who drilled a three-pointer to cut the lead in two.

Brooklyn’s Joe Harris tried to get the ball back in the court in a hurry after Beal’s shot, causing a miscommunication between him and Kevin Durant. Garrison Mathew stole the ball, dished it to Westbrook, who sunk a dagger three to completely turn around the game in just seven seconds.

The Nets tried to respond in the dying second, but the previous sequence by Wizards was too much of a shock for them to make something happen.

Russell Westbrook was the man of the night, having scored 41 points with 10 rebounds and eight assists. Bradley Beal followed with a similarly great game, putting up 37 points to go with six rebounds and four assists.

Kevin Durant was Brooklyn’s best player, having a 37-point, seven-rebound, and six-assist performance. Joe Harris and Kyrie Irving added 30 and 26 points, respectively.

Despite the win, the Wizards still have the worst record in the NBA league at 4-12. Nets are second in the East at 13-9.

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According to Wizards head coach Scott Brooks, Westbrook is dealing with a quadriceps injury and will be on the sidelines for at least one week. The 32-year-old All-Star initially got hurt during training camp and never fully recovered.

“It was starting to get better, and then he hit it again, set him back a little bit,” said Brooks. “And then the last time, it was in Philadelphia [on Wednesday], he hit it again.”

This is a tough blow for the Wizards, who had high hopes for 2020-21 but opened the season with a disappointing 2-8 record.

The news also comes after Washington starter Thomas Bryant also got injured for the season. Bryant suffered a torn ACL in a loss to Boston Celtics on Saturday.

The Wizards acquired Russell Westbrook in the offseason, trading guard John Wall and a protected first-round pick to the Houston Rockets in exchange. The franchise hoped that pairing Westbrook with their superstar Bradley Beal could finally put Washington in contention in the Eastern Conference.

However, Westbrook hasn’t been able to provide that so far despite being on the verge of averaging a triple-double. He’s played seven games in a Wizards’ jersey and contributed 19.3 points, 11.3 assists, and 9.7 rebounds per contest so far.

The post Wizards’ Russell Westbrook Dealing with Quadriceps Injury appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Westbrook needed only three quarters to record his 147th career triple-double in the game against the Philadelphia 76ers, recording 13 points, 14 assists, and 10 rebounds before the final period. He finished the game with a stat line of 21 points, 15 assists, and 11 rebounds, but that still wasn’t enough for the Wizards to get a win.

Despite having a 10-point-lead entering the fourth, Wizards couldn’t hold onto it down the stretch and ended up starting the 2020-21 NBA season with a 113-107 loss.

Speaking with reporters after the game, Westbrook was self-critical and said that he was “kind of disappointed” with the way he played.

“Not good enough,” said Westbrook when asked to rate his performance. “Honestly, I am kind of disappointed in myself, just some mishaps and plays where I could have been better.”

But Westbrook did manage to impress his teammates, with his backcourt partner and fellow All-Star Bradley Beal saying that he loved the intensity that the 2017 NBA MVP brought to the team.

“Granted, it’s only one game, but I just love his energy, his competitiveness, and his accountability at the end of the day,” said Beal.

Westbrook joined the Washington Wizards earlier in the offseason after demanding a trade from the Houston Rockets. Reportedly, Westbrook felt that the Rockets are too “laid-back” and that he couldn’t play his game there.

Wizards gave up four-time All-Star point guard John Wall and a protected first-round pick to get Westbrook.

The post Russell Westbrook Debuts for Wizards With a Triple-Double appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard had a chat with Chris Miller of NBC Sports Washington and said that Westbrook kept a “professional” attitude prior to leaving for Los Angeles. According to Sheppard, the 2017 NBA MVP only expressed interest in being traded if that meant he’d join the Lakers.

“Russell actually never asked to move on,” Sheppard told Miller. “He just said, ‘If I can get to the Lakers, that’d be something I would love to do. If not, I’ll be back here.'”

Sheppard also revealed that he proposed the Los Angeles Clippers as a potential destination, but Westbrook wasn’t open to that idea.

“So Russell was happy being here, and we were very grateful for him being here,” he added.

Westbrook ended up getting his wish and will now play in front of his hometown crowd alongside fellow superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Wizards, on the other hand, received a strong package in return that includes Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell, and Kyle Kuzma, which will allow them to build around their All-Star Bradley Beal.

Westbrook spent one season with the Wizards and averaged 22.2 points per game alongside a career-high 11.5 rebounds and 11.7 assists. Washington made it to the playoffs through a play-in tournament before being eliminated in the first round against the Philadelphia 76ers.

The post Russell Westbrook “Actually Never Asked to Move On” Says Wizards GM appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Things didn’t start well for the Wizards, however, as they fell into a 14-point hole at halftime. The Lakers looked like they were firing on all cylinders at that point despite missing All-Star Anthony Davis and point guard Dennis Schroder.

But thanks to a productive third quarter from stars Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal, Washington found its way back into the game. They then forced overtime, where Westbrook and Beal scored all of the Wizards’ points and carried their team to a memorable win.

After the final buzzer, Westbrook was sitting at 32 points, 14 rebounds, and nine assists, while Beal scored 33 points and added three steals.

“It’s been tough, but we’ve been sticking together,” said Westbrook after the game. “That’s the main thing. If you get caught up with everything else going on, teams and players tend to come apart, but we’ve been sticking together and communicating on how to become a better team, and it’s been paying off for us.”

LeBron James, this year’s favorite for the MVP award, starred for the Lakers and had a near triple-double with 31 points, 9 rebounds, and 13 assists. He had help in Montrezl Harell, who scored his season-high 26 points.

Wizards, who started the campaign 6-17, have now improved to 11-17 and find themselves No. 13 in the East with just two games behind the No. 8 seed.

Lakers, on the other hand, are currently on a three-game losing streak. They fell to the No. 3 seed in the West with a 22-10 record.

The post Wizards Beat Lakers 127-124 in OT to Extend Their Winning Streak appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Everybody predicted the Wizards to lose before the tip-off against Brooklyn on Monday night. They were in bad form, dealing with injuries and COVID-19 issues, while the Nets had won the last four and seemed like they are just getting hot.

Things looked like advertised for the better part of the game, with Brooklyn leading as much as 18 points. But defensive issues and the resilience of Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal turned the easy win into a wild finish.

With 12 seconds left in the contest, the Nets were up by five, and it looked like they had this one in the bag. But Ish Smith quickly inbounded the ball and got it to Beal, who drilled a three-pointer to cut the lead in two.

Brooklyn’s Joe Harris tried to get the ball back in the court in a hurry after Beal’s shot, causing a miscommunication between him and Kevin Durant. Garrison Mathew stole the ball, dished it to Westbrook, who sunk a dagger three to completely turn around the game in just seven seconds.

The Nets tried to respond in the dying second, but the previous sequence by Wizards was too much of a shock for them to make something happen.

Russell Westbrook was the man of the night, having scored 41 points with 10 rebounds and eight assists. Bradley Beal followed with a similarly great game, putting up 37 points to go with six rebounds and four assists.

Kevin Durant was Brooklyn’s best player, having a 37-point, seven-rebound, and six-assist performance. Joe Harris and Kyrie Irving added 30 and 26 points, respectively.

Despite the win, the Wizards still have the worst record in the NBA league at 4-12. Nets are second in the East at 13-9.

The post Russell Westbrook Scores 41 Points to Lead the Wizards Past the Nets appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

According to Wizards head coach Scott Brooks, Westbrook is dealing with a quadriceps injury and will be on the sidelines for at least one week. The 32-year-old All-Star initially got hurt during training camp and never fully recovered.

“It was starting to get better, and then he hit it again, set him back a little bit,” said Brooks. “And then the last time, it was in Philadelphia [on Wednesday], he hit it again.”

This is a tough blow for the Wizards, who had high hopes for 2020-21 but opened the season with a disappointing 2-8 record.

The news also comes after Washington starter Thomas Bryant also got injured for the season. Bryant suffered a torn ACL in a loss to Boston Celtics on Saturday.

The Wizards acquired Russell Westbrook in the offseason, trading guard John Wall and a protected first-round pick to the Houston Rockets in exchange. The franchise hoped that pairing Westbrook with their superstar Bradley Beal could finally put Washington in contention in the Eastern Conference.

However, Westbrook hasn’t been able to provide that so far despite being on the verge of averaging a triple-double. He’s played seven games in a Wizards’ jersey and contributed 19.3 points, 11.3 assists, and 9.7 rebounds per contest so far.

The post Wizards’ Russell Westbrook Dealing with Quadriceps Injury appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Westbrook needed only three quarters to record his 147th career triple-double in the game against the Philadelphia 76ers, recording 13 points, 14 assists, and 10 rebounds before the final period. He finished the game with a stat line of 21 points, 15 assists, and 11 rebounds, but that still wasn’t enough for the Wizards to get a win.

Despite having a 10-point-lead entering the fourth, Wizards couldn’t hold onto it down the stretch and ended up starting the 2020-21 NBA season with a 113-107 loss.

Speaking with reporters after the game, Westbrook was self-critical and said that he was “kind of disappointed” with the way he played.

“Not good enough,” said Westbrook when asked to rate his performance. “Honestly, I am kind of disappointed in myself, just some mishaps and plays where I could have been better.”

But Westbrook did manage to impress his teammates, with his backcourt partner and fellow All-Star Bradley Beal saying that he loved the intensity that the 2017 NBA MVP brought to the team.

“Granted, it’s only one game, but I just love his energy, his competitiveness, and his accountability at the end of the day,” said Beal.

Westbrook joined the Washington Wizards earlier in the offseason after demanding a trade from the Houston Rockets. Reportedly, Westbrook felt that the Rockets are too “laid-back” and that he couldn’t play his game there.

Wizards gave up four-time All-Star point guard John Wall and a protected first-round pick to get Westbrook.

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