BROOKLYN, N.Y. — The next test for Russell Westbrook is Deron Williams, the biggest and arguably best point guard he will have faced this year.
On paper, it's a matchup of top flight talents who have led their teams toward the top of the standings in their respective conferences.
Then again, if Westbrook keeps up what he's been doing lately the matchup might not be much of a contest.
Westbrook's play over the past 10 days has been game-changing, so effective it has elicited unsolicited praise from coaches and teammates in recent days.
“I think Russ deserves a lot of credit. He's really locked in,” said Nick Collison, for instance. “He's getting everybody involved and we just keep building. He's kind of been the catalyst for (success).”
Westbrook leads the Thunder into Brooklyn on Tuesday night to face Williams and the relocated Nets. Oklahoma City enters the game on a five-game winning streak and winners of 13 of its past 15.
More and more, the Thunder's traveling party is crediting Westbrook's all-around game for this current hot streak.
“Russell's had an impact on both ends of the floor it seems like every game the last week and a half,” said Thunder coach Scott Brooks. “That's always a good thing for us when Russell plays as hard as he has on both ends of the floor.”
Over the past five games, Westbrook is averaging 19.4 points, six rebounds and 9.4 assists while shooting 43 percent. Perhaps even more impressive is that over that same span he's held opposing starting point guards — Greivis Vasquez, Mo Williams, Jeremy Lin, Kemba Walker and Jrue Holiday — to combined averages of six points, 1.6 rebounds, 7.2 assists, two turnovers and 29 percent shooting.
Those averages by opposing point guards suggest Westbrook is tapping into the defensive potential that largely drove the Thunder to draft him fourth overall 4 1/2 years ago. Westbrook repeatedly has vowed to maintain that defensive effort.
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