That was fast! Veteran LA Clippers point guard Russell Westbrook could be rejoining his comrades quite soon, after all, despite undergoing surgery just three weeks ago. Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN reports that the nine-time All-Star, 2017 MVP and future first ballot Hall of Famer is slated to make his comeback to the roster as early as next week. The 6’3″ UCLA product might be back as early as Monday, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski:
Los Angeles Clippers guard Russell Westbrook is expected to return to the lineup next week — perhaps as soon as Monday vs. the Indiana Pacers, sources tell ESPN. Westbrook — one of the league’s top sixth men — had surgery to repair a fractured left hand three weeks ago. pic.twitter.com/cL6JdNyVaO
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 22, 2024
Ahead of tonight’s matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers, LA has gone just 5-5 across the ten games Westbrook was sidelined. The reserve playmaker fractured his left hand during a 140-115 blowout of the lowly Washington Wizards on March 1st (exactly three weeks ago today), and needed a surgery to recuperate. It’s remarkable that he could be back so soon, but the hyper-athletic Westbrook, still a speedster even in his NBA dotage (he’s 35), has always been pretty expedient in recovering from major injuries.
It’s a great development for the Clippers, who’ve enjoyed surprising health this year with regards to their two current All-Stars, forwards Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Both Leonard and George have suited up for 62 games and counting this year. Accordingly, LA has looked pretty darn lethal, at least prior to this Westbrook absence.
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
Big picture, the Clippers are 43-25 and rank as the fourth-best team, by record, in a stacked Western Conference. The return of their top bench player sooner rather than later would be ideal to help them preserve homecourt advantage heading into the first round of the playoffs. Westbrook had been a major Sixth Man of the Year contender pre-injury.
In his 58 healthy games (10 starts, mostly at the beginning of the season before the team acquired James Harden), Westbrook is averaging 11.1 points on .452/.268/.677 shooting splits, 5.1 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.1 steals. During his tenure with the team, the Long Beach native has served as a sparkplug, energy-changing bench option for a team that occasionally can be a bit lackadaisical in bringing the ball up the floor, between Harden and All-Star forwards Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
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