At that moment, as the Thunder’s point guard stood alongside teammates during the bold, bass-filled rendition, he told himself Monday night’s game would be different.
Westbrook wanted to revert to his strength, better yet to what he does best — applying pressure with aggressive attacks to the rim.
"I wanted to start the game off that way,” Westbrook said. "In other games, I’ve been settling for jump shots, and there was no reason for me to do that.”
Welcome back, Mr. Westbrook.
Behind Westbrook’s game-high 29 points, the Thunder cruised to a 98-85 win over Chicago at United Center, snapping the Bulls’ four-game winning streak on a night in which the offense was far from flawless.
Kevin Durant’s franchise-record streak of 30-point games ended at seven, largely because he was battling an injured right ankle from the first quarter on and a bulldog duo of Bulls defenders in Luol Deng and John Salmons all night long. Durant scored 25 points in just 37 minutes, his fewest since Dec. 19. James Harden was the only other Thunder player in double-digit scoring with 13 points off the bench.
But Westbrook efficiently compensated for his team’s scoring shortage, hitting 13-of-24 shots while grabbing seven rebounds and six assists in 45 minutes. It was only the sixth time this season that someone other than Durant led the team in scoring.
And what’s become apparent is Westbrook has regained his killer instinct, showing the benefits he brings the Thunder when he transforms from set-up man to scorer. It’s a transformation we’ve rarely seen this year from Westbrook, who has spent much of this season playing at a slower pace, seemingly trying to prove he can be the floor general Oklahoma City fans fancy.
Entering Monday’s game, Westbrook had recorded four double-doubles in his past seven games. He tallied 10 assists three times and 13 assists twice over that same span. Westbrook has been productive, just in a different style, boasting 83 assists against 18 turnovers over his past 10 games before facing the Bulls.
But Westbrook’s average shot attempts have increased each month, from 11.5 in two October games, to 13.9 in November, to 14.9 in December to 20 in two January games.
"That’s a feel thing that he’s doing a great job of learning,” said Thunder coach Scott Brooks of Westbrook’s balancing act.
Westbrook stole the show in a second-half that saw the Thunder buckle down defensively and outscore the Bulls 51-33. Westbrook took 11 shot attempts over the final 24 minutes. No other starter had more than five.
The shot that said it all, though, came with 2:32 remaining, when the Bulls had cut an 18-point deficit to 10. Westbrook had Chicago center Joakim Noah isolated at the top of the key. He gave him a little dance with his dribble then blew by the big man before rattling in a floater at the front of the rim.
Ballgame.
"All of us have to be a little more aggressive to give Kevin some space,” said Oklahoma City’s Thabo Sefolosha. "Right now, the defense is focusing mostly on him, and I think we’re doing a little bit too much giving him the ball and watching. So when Russ is aggressive like that, that gives him some space and that’s good.”
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