Although it’s been considered a foregone conclusion for the past several days, on Sunday, Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni gave official word that Russell Westbrook would miss Game 1 of the team’s first round playoff series against the Thunder.
Westbrook has been nursing a strained quad and was widely reported as being expected to miss “at least” the first few games of the playoff series between the teams, but Sunday’s word from his team’s head coach was as close to an official word as we’ve gotten.
Westbrook last played for the Rockets on Aug. 11, meaning that he will have had six full days of rest and treatment once the teams tip off Game 1 of their best-of-seven playoff series on Tuesday, Aug. 18, but it obviously won’t be enough time for him to find himself back on the floor.
Russell Westbrook will miss Game 1 of the Rockets series against Oklahoma City, per Mike D'Antoni. Westbrook has been battling a quadriceps injury.
— Chris Mannix (@SIChrisMannix) August 16, 2020
The head coach tapped reserve Eric Gordon to start in place of the injured Westbrook, with Gordon expected to be the primary defender on Chris Paul.
Eric Gordon will start in place of Russell Westbrook in Game 1 and have the responsibility of defending Chris Paul. #Rockets
— Alykhan Bijani (@Rockets_Insider) August 16, 2020
Considering the fact that his explosive athleticism is a major part of his game, the injury to his right leg will almost certainly have a considerable impact on the Rockets’ title odds.
Houston was 36-21 this past season with Westbrook in the lineup and just 8-7 in the 15 games he missed this past season.
Without him, the Rockets will obviously be compromised, and suddenly, their advancing out of the first round against an upstart Thunder team is far from a guarantee.