NBA Star Index: Russell Westbrook is rekindling his MVP fire, and the small-ball Rockets look dangerous

Welcome again to the NBA Star Index — a weekly gauge of the gamers who are most controlling the buzz about the league. Reminder: Inclusion on this checklist isn’t really essentially a fantastic point. It merely suggests that you are capturing the NBA world’s attention. Also, this is not a rating. The gamers mentioned are in no specific order as it pertains to the buzz they’re making. This column will run every single 7 days by means of the stop of the standard year.

Westbrook is in the middle of a single of the most sizzling stretches of his job, and obviously that’s indicating a little something. Following posting 36 details, 10 rebounds and five assists in a get more than Boston on Tuesday, Westbrook has scored at minimum twenty details in twenty five straight video games, which is the longest present streak in the NBA and the fifth-longest streak of Westbrook’s job. 

Because January 1st, Westbrook is main the league in scoring at 33.1 details per recreation on more than 52-percent shooting, which is the third-greatest mark in the league among guards attempting at minimum fifteen photographs a evening. Exactly where is the performance coming from? Westbrook has trimmed his 3-issue attempts by more than 50 percent — from four.nine per recreation by means of December 31st to two.3 given that the flip of the calendar yr. 

Translation: He is heading to the hole like a madman. Even at 31 years old, there nevertheless isn’t really a defender in the league who can keep in entrance of him, and every time the chance offers alone he is using advantage of the attention defenses give James Harden to explode by means of sea-parting lanes. No settling. Extremely very little perimeter shooting. 

At the trade deadline, the Rockets quadrupled down on the Westbrook expertise, sending Clint Capela to Atlanta as element of a 4-workforce trade that brought Robert Covington to Houston, which is now fully commited to taking part in with out a standard center. With shooters all about the arc dragging defenders absent from the rim, Westbrook is undertaking a ton of this:

In the 3 video games given that the trade, the Rockets have defeated the Lakers and Celtics and have been a single Bojan Bogdanovic 30-foot buzzer-beater from beating the Jazz. In individuals video games, Westbrook has scored 41, 39 and 36 details on fifty seven-percent shooting. 

Who knows if taking part in this modest will be sustainable in the playoffs. It’s going to be a tough highway if the Rockets match up with a workforce like the Lakers, who are collectively humongous. Nikola Jokic and Rudy Gobert are two likely correct-center matchups that would be an uphill fight for P.J. Tucker. 

But that difficulty swings the two approaches. Can Gobert and Jokic occur out on the perimeter and defend the Rockets’ five shooters? Can they run with Westbrook, who has pretty significantly solitary-handedly turned Houston into an attacking changeover workforce that performs at the next-quickest tempo in the league? 

We will see. But with the way Westbrook is taking part in (MVP degree, with out concern, more than the very last 6 months), you’d probably be silly to depart the Rockets, depending on matchups, out of the Western Meeting title discussion. 

With 32 details, fourteen assists and 10 rebounds, LeBron recorded his 12th triple-double of the year — tied with Luka Doncic for the league direct — in a major-time OT victory more than the Nuggets on Wednesday. The very last recreation just before the All-Star crack is normally the initially working day of trip for NBA gamers, but the Lakers continue on to take every single recreation significantly and it starts off with the guy who’s 34 years old with every single purpose in the planet to mail in the occasional recreation. In its place, he is nevertheless undertaking this …

If Embiid’s objective is to turn out to be the signature NBA heel, he is succeeding. He is even shushing his own followers — who, in normal Philly style, have been, shall we say, aggressively vocal in their displeasure with the Sixers’ underachieving approaches. 

“I never care how it looks… I am just having again to myself, getting a fantastic a–hole, just taking part in basketball and making an attempt to dominate,” Embiid told reporters. 

The “fantastic a–hole” point is properly Embiid, who performed off the again and forth with the crowd, and in truth the Philly trustworthy was again in his corner not much too long soon after the Sixers took down the Clippers.

Beating the Clippers at comprehensive energy is a assertion get anyplace, but it does occur with some qualification getting that it was in Philadelphia where the Sixers have been virtually unbeatable all year. Via Thursday, the Sixers are a league-greatest twenty five-two at residence and nine-19 on the highway. If Embiid and business never determine issues out absent from the comforts of residence, they’re heading to have a limited postseason. 

Lillard is fourth in the league in scoring and sixth in assists. He is possessing arguably the greatest year of his job, but so far it has been mostly for naught. Points just usually are not heading the Blazers’ way. They have been decimated by accidents, and are at the moment five video games out of the ultimate playoff place in the West. 

The Blazers have suffered two essential defeats in their very last two video games — a single to the Pelicans, who are ideal behind Portland in the standings, and a single to Memphis, which is the workforce the Blazers are chasing for the No. eight seed. Last Friday, Lillard and the Blazers have been definitely robbed by a blatantly skipped goaltending connect with that likely price them the recreation in opposition to Utah. 

Very seriously, how do you not connect with this?

That would’ve tied the recreation with less than fifteen seconds to enjoy. Utah might’ve scored on the ultimate possession or won in extra time, but the Blazers deserved their likelihood to determine their own outcome. And now arrives the information that Lillard will miss the All-Star festivities — he was scheduled to compete in the recreation and the 3-issue contest — with a strained groin. Devin Booker will change him in the All-Star Sport. 

Williamson posted a job-superior 31 details, 9 rebounds and five assists — when shooting 10-for-seventeen from the area and eleven-for-fourteen from the no cost-toss line — in a get more than the Blazers on Tuesday. He did all this in 28 minutes. 

Williamson, who’s averaging 21 details per recreation, has scored at minimum twenty details in 7 of his initially 9 job video games, which places him, nevertheless all over again, in historic business. For each ESPN Stats and Info, Williamson is the only participant more than the very last 30 seasons to accomplish that feat. The only two gamers who’ve occur near are Shaquille O’Neal and Grant Hill, who the two scored twenty details 7 moments in their initially 10 job video games.

Using it a bit further, Williamson is now the twentieth participant in record to score at minimum fourteen details in every of his initially 9 job video games, with fifteen of the preceding 19 gamers to do it getting in the Hall of Fame, per Elias Sports activities. The very last rookie to score at minimum fourteen details in every of his initially 9 video games was Dikembe Mutombo in 1991-92. Prior to that, a pair of fellas you may well have read of have been the most modern to accomplish this sort of a mark.

Yeah, that’s Michael Jordan and Patrick Ewing. Not exactly terrible business for Zion, who often seems to be like a guy taking part in in opposition to boys despite getting just 19 years old. 

Whether or not the Pelicans, who hung onto J.J. Redick and Jrue Holiday at the trade deadline, will crack the playoffs this year remains to be found. But both way, with Williamson and All-Star Brandon Ingram leading the way, and Lonzo Ball continuing to clearly show a ton of guarantee, the long run is undoubtedly dazzling in New Orleans.