Things must have felt grim for the Oklahoma City Thunder following their Game 5 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the NBA play-offs.
They were now staring at a 3-2 deficit, having fallen by a single point at home in overtime in that crucial fifth game. It was their fourth straight overtime game against Memphis, in fact, and they had lost three of them. They only even won Game 4 in OT because reserve guard Reggie Jackson had lifted the team with the performance of his life.
Kevin Durant was struggling to take over contests with the the hounding Tony Allen defending him. And, worst of all, Russell Westbrook had shot 44-of-128, just 34.4 per cent.
That Game 5 against the Grizzlies actually summed up Westbrook to that point perfectly – 30 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds, good for a triple-double (basically basketball’s gold standard for a single-game performance). But he shot 10-for-31.
Despite his other qualities, Russell Westbrook was wielding the double-edged sword of high-volume, low-percentage shooting for a good many self-inflicted wounds. They were, very nearly, fatal.
And then the Thunder, very much to their relief, got the good Westbrook back. He shot 42.9 per cent (9-of-21) in Game 6, and added nine rebounds and five assists. He was at his best in Game 7, shooting 10-of-16 (62.5 per cent), scoring 27 points, dishing 16 assists and grabbing 10 rebounds – a real triple-double, this time.
Oklahoma City won those two games by a combined 31 points.
In their shockingly comfortable victory over the Clippers in six games in the second round, Westbrook averaged 26.3 points per game, 6.0 rebounds and 8.5 assists. He shot 49.1 per cent (54-for-110).
This is the Russell Westbrook, especially with Serge Ibaka out for the rest of the play-offs, that the Oklahoma City Thunder need to not only get past the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference finals, but to unseat the Miami Heat as NBA champions.
Kevin Durant will do his part. No one need worry about that. As Westbrook himself said after Game 3 against the Clippers, “We get the ball to Kevin and he does what he does.”
Thus it falls on Westbrook to be the X-factor. Since that Game 5 against the Grizzlies, he’s been exactly that.
When Westbrook is in form, he can embody the best of his sport – the unmatched athleticism, the theatrics, the fearlessness.
Stronger than any point guard in the game, quicker than all but a few, Westbrook is a physical specimen capable of creating not only for himself, which he does in plenty, but also for his teammates, as some of his recent assist totals show. His range and leaping ability make him a better rebounder than almost anyone in his peer group. His vision and smarts get questioned – but they shouldn’t. He’s actually probably among the most cerebral players in the NBA. Those occasional avert-your-eyes shooting totals simply come from his absolute, unyielding faith in himself. “Taking the foot off the gas” doesn’t really appear to be built into him.
That is what he needs to learn. Pippen and Jordan. Stockton and Malone. Westbrook needs to find his own comfort in that role, because there are no doubts that Durant is the Jordan and Malone to Westbrook’s Pippen and Stockton.
It’s not about being disciplined so much as it is about figuring out how to best channel your talents to amplify your own production and that of the more talented player you’re teamed with. It seems like he’s done that over his last eight games.
The San Antonio Spurs will be a very, very stiff challenge. Missing Serge Ibaka will hurt. But if Westbrook can find his inner Stockton and Pippen (and, come to think of it, he kind of plays like a more aggressive cross between Stockton and Pippen), he and Durant will be near-impossible to stop with or without Serge.
Russell Westbrook’s game can be beautifu and terrifying – sometimes for opponents, sometimes for his coach. If the Thunder want to be champs, he’s going to need it to be more of the former.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
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Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dark Souls: Remastered
Developer: From Software (remaster by QLOC)
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Price: Dh199
Long Shot
Director: Jonathan Levine
Starring: Charlize Theron, Seth Rogan
Four stars
'Midnights'
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
The%20specs
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Bharatanatyam
A ancient classical dance from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Intricate footwork and expressions are used to denote spiritual stories and ideas.
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Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
Company profile
Name: Back to Games and Boardgame Space
Started: Back to Games (2015); Boardgame Space (Mark Azzam became co-founder in 2017)
Founder: Back to Games (Mr Azzam); Boardgame Space (Mr Azzam and Feras Al Bastaki)
Based: Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Industry: Back to Games (retail); Boardgame Space (wholesale and distribution)
Funding: Back to Games: self-funded by Mr Azzam with Dh1.3 million; Mr Azzam invested Dh250,000 in Boardgame Space
Growth: Back to Games: from 300 products in 2015 to 7,000 in 2019; Boardgame Space: from 34 games in 2017 to 3,500 in 2019
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
Company profile
Date started: January, 2014
Founders: Mike Dawson, Varuna Singh, and Benita Rowe
Based: Dubai
Sector: Education technology
Size: Five employees
Investment: $100,000 from the ExpoLive Innovation Grant programme in 2018 and an initial $30,000 pre-seed investment from the Turn8 Accelerator in 2014. Most of the projects are government funded.
Partners/incubators: Turn8 Accelerator; In5 Innovation Centre; Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Programme; Dubai Future Accelerators; FHI 360; VSO and Consult and Coach for a Cause (C3)